Report on

Impression Management Technique: Do we need those in virtual life?

Submitted by: Group-8

Alpha Squad

Name Id#
Md. Fouad Hasan
Abu Bakar Siddique Shad
Shahrin Farjana
Ikra Binte Islam
Ishrat Kamal Zinia

Prepared for

Dr. Ummaha Tul Hazra

Assistant Professor
North South University

Introduction:
Impression management is a conscious process. It is based on how people attempt to control the
perceptions others form of them. Individual attempt to controls other impression by changing his
or her general behavior, appearance, style and body language. Every individual is in involved in
certain practices. If every individual want to avoid these so embarrassed or embarrassing others.

Why We use Impression Management:

We are using impression management in our day to day life in different ways. There are mainly
two main motives we have for trying to manage and control the impressions of others. They are
given below-

Instrumental motive: Instrumental motives includes what we have already mentioned.

The interest for increased self-esteem. The main meaning of instrumental motivation is
the achieving of rewards. So, when we try to control and manage perceptions to get
something back from another person, we are motivated by instrumental purposes.
Expressive motive: Expressive motive comes down to wanting to be in charge of
individuals personal behavior and identity. It can come from social norms, expectations
or restrictions.

Techniques of Impression Management:

There are eight techniques of impression management. All of these eight techniques are mostly
used in general as well as in virtual world. Those techniques are-

Conformity
Favor
Excuse
Flattery
Enhancement

Apologies

Self-promotion

Exemplification

Impression Management Techniques in Virtual World

The advancement of technology has made it possible for physically dispersed people to work
together and share information. This changes the culture of the organization and gives
organizational behavior a new dimension. Even if it changes the pattern of the organization,
Impression management techniques are still used by people. Impression management techniques
have equal importance in virtual world also. We conduct an interview to figure out how
significant these techniques are in virtual world. All the people participated in survey are
working on different companies or working as a freelancer.

1. Conformity: Conformity is usually used to fit in to a group by changing behavior or

belief according to that group. It may also be used with a purpose of reward or
promotion.
In todays world there are many organizations where people do not have to come to a
specific physical location or office to work together with other colleagues. Even in those
types of organization social context is important to work as a team. With a hope to be a
part of the team people use this type of technique.
The respondents were asked if they ever accomplished their colleagues to be considered
as a friendly person and in response to that question most of the participants agreed that
they did it when they just joined the organization. With an intention to be a part of the
team they use conformity as an impression management technique. Some of them also
stated that in some situation they agreed on a point even if they did not want to. They just
did it to consider a part of a team.
For example when a group of freelancers form a team to work together there is a leader
who plays the main role of the team. The team leader communicate with the clients and
manage jobs for himself and the other members of the team. The team members always
abide by the rules and regulations provided by the team leader though the rules and
regulations are not liked by the team members. They do as they work under the team
leader and team leader provides jobs to them. Even if the team leader gives false
complain against someone, he/she does not argue rather he/she manages to adjust
himself/ herself with the team leader.
 2.Favor: As part of Impression management technique favor is used by helping others with
an intention to be considered as a friendly person. In virtual world even though there is a limited
scope for face to face interaction people still used Ingratiation like favor to be someones good
book.

In our interview the respondents were asked if they ever do any kind of personal favor for their
superiors or colleagues to be treated like a friendly person. In response most of them agreed that
they sometimes get involved in those kind of behavior. One of them also stated that he used to
help his colleague by sharing information by email so that the person could finish the work with
in time limit. Even though he was not asked for help he did it just to show them how friendly he
is to his colleague and try to improve intimacy.

For example in freelancing job, when freelancer has efficient in multiple task he uses favor
technique. Suppose a SEO expert freelancer is doing work with a SEO client. He also experts in
Graphics Design. If his SEO client gives him the hope to provide graphics designing project in
near future, he will do the SEO job at reasonable price and try to maintain good relationship with
the client.

3.Excuses: One of the defensive impression management technique which is also used in
virtual world. Excuse is practiced in such a situation where an individuals behavior will lead
him or her to build a negative impression in the eyes of others. In those cases individuals have to
use this technique to protect his or her image.

In our interview the participants were asked if they have used excuse as an impression
management technique to build a positive image. The respondents replied that even though they
do not always have to present physically into a specific location it is important for to finish their
work within a time frame. If they fail to do the work timely they are more likely to use it to hold
a positive image. They also have to give proper justifications for this kind of behavior.

4. Flattery: Flattery is an assertive Impression management technique to increase social

attractiveness. It uses by complementing others about their behavior in an effort to make one self
claim perceptive and pleasant. Flattery also used in virtual world.
For example, different types of sales company, in case of promoting, are supposed to do is job
under social media in which sales company needs to use this impression management technique.
Flattery is one of the impression management techniques. In our Research, we found a company
where sales worker promotes their companies daily events in social media. When sales worker
shares daily events, pictures in social media like, facebook and that companies managing director
followed this post in social media, which created a type of impression about that employee
towards a employer. Managing Director called this sales worker and praised him. Because,
Managing Director could feel that his sales worker is active and perfect for his company. Sales
worker shared their daily events, pictures in social media because he wanted to promote their
company. Through his shared post people also can know their company. Sales worker just did it
to consider it as a part of a company.

5.Enhancement is a self-focused Impression management technique. Under this technique,

individual tries to priorities his work rather than any other people work of the organizations. This
technique is an active self-presentation of a person. A person is aiming to enhance his image in
the eyes of others. In virtual world found enhancement uses in many ways.

In our interview we found a company where as company has intranet portal which is their own
web portal in virtual world. Through intranet portal one worker update their daily work activities.
Though other workers do not update their daily work activities but one of them daily update their
works in intranet portal. Among them one of the workers tells his manager I updated my works
daily in very details and correctly which is really helpful for further sales. A worker through this
creates impression in his company.

6. Apologies In general the impression management technique, apologies is use as admitting

responsibility for an unpleasant and undesirable incident and at the same time attempt to get a
pardon for the for the doing activity. We use this technique in the virtual world also. How we use
this technique in the virtual world is describe below-
Examples: In different types of online job or in case of freelancing we are supposed to do our job
under our client there we all need to use this impression management technique. Apologies is one
of that technique. In case of doing online base job sometimes it happens that our client
communicates with us via video calling (Skype) or through e-mail. It is sometimes very natural
to happen that they might be wanted something from us but somehow we understand something
else. In that case mismatches occur as we dont understand the proper thing what we want to do
basically. That time we use apologies such as when our client say that work was not up to the
mark or it cant be approved as this work procedures is wrong we should reply them sorry such
as- I am extremely sorry I made a mistake as I dont understand how to do the job or topic of
the project. Give me some time to fix the problem and I will recover it.

7. Self- promotion: Self promotion is another impression management technique. This

technique is basically draws special attention to ones best qualities and achievement to highlight
his or herself which is known as self promotion.

Example: we use this technique in virtual world in different way such as- linkedin and other
types of social job sites like BD jobs, Ever jobs.com are mostly used now-a-days. From all of
this, linkedin is the world's largest professional network with hundreds of millions of members,
and growing rapidly.Linkedin helps people by establishing your professional profile and control
one of the top search results for your name. Build and maintain professional network, find and
connect with colleagues and classmates, find other professionals in the same industry
using groups and mainly discover new career opportunities by searching for job. Thats why
people always try to enrich his or her profile or cv in linkedin and show their best qualities as
well as achievement always want to prove his or her as a most qualified for their desired job so
that professional people get impressed by visiting their profile and call his or her for job
interview. In that way, people self-promote themselves in front of professional people in virtual
world by using linkedin.

8.Exemplification: Exemplification is one of the most used technique of impression

management. Exemplification is basically doing more than you need in an effort to show how
dedicated you are. Stay at work late or arrive at office very earlier so that people will notice that
you are very much hard working, try to appear busy even at that times when things are slower all
these things are use as exemplification intentionally. we also use this technique in virtual world.

In virtual world we always have to use impression management techniques. This technique is
also used in various sector of virtual world like- students sometimes have to submit their report
softcopy to their instructor via E-mail in that time they submit the report at midnight which
shows that they working very hard whole night after doing full night work they submit it which
creates a good impression towards that student. This same technique also use in same way in the
office between employee and boss. More specifically in virtual world freelancers are also use this
technique to prove themselves hardworking and dedicate worker to their foreign client such as
when they hourly base work for their client there is software which is called tracker , the main
job of this tracker is when freelancer start to do their work they have to on the tracker first
through this software system client can always monitor their freelancer actually they are working
properly or not maintaining the time limit. This tracker basically track the movement of mouse
cursor of the freelancer. But in that case sometimes some of the freelancer move their mouse
continuously here and there of different sites to prove them very dedicated and hard working to
their work but actually not working at all. Rather doing this they sometimes do another thing also
which is to prove themselves dedicated, they submit their work very early not in the fix time
given by their client so that their foreign client think them very hard working, concern and loyal
about their work

Personality Traits and Impression Management:

Individuals differ in the extent to which they regulate, control, and observe the selves they show
in interpersonal relationships and social situations. One of the most studied personality traits
which is associates with impression management is self-monitoring. Self-monitoring is
described as a personality trait which refers to an ability to control behavior to be fit in social
situation. There are two types of self monitoring people one is high self monitor and another one
is low self monitor.
 High self monitor: High self monitoring people are concerned with displaying
appropriate behavior in social situation also adjusting behavior to fit the situation. That
type of people monitoring the public appearance of self what is they display in social
situation. High self-monitors are attentive to what others do and has skilled at controlling
images of themselves.

Low self monitor: less self monitoring people are less concerned with fitting into a
situation or not able to display socially correct behavior. They are consistent with their
personalities, regardless of the beneficial or detrimental effects for them.

Effectiveness of Impression Management Techniques:

Impression management techniques are mostly used by us in real life also in virtual world. People use
these techniques sometimes consciously or can be sometimes unconsciously. All of these techniques have
effectiveness as well.

From all of these techniques, Ingratiation is mostly effective which is a psychological technique
in which an individual attempts to influence, manipulate or control another by becoming more
attractive or likeable to their target those who ingratiate with their boss to get higher performance
evaluations. This is positively related with performance evaluation. The people who self-promote
themselves basically receive lower performance evaluations and shows that individuals who
have good political skill are able to interpret impression management into higher performance
appraisals. Impression management also has effectiveness during online job interview

Conclusion:

Overall based on our interview we can say that impression management is equally important in
virtual world. People do use those techniques to build a positive impression in all aspects of
virtual world. Like in the real world we all engage in making a positive self- presentation in
virtual world also. These tactics are effective to build positive impression in workplace also. But
these tactics may not give the desired results we want to get and it sometimes backfire. We
should apply it carefully because all of them may not be equally important in all the areas.
Finally we can say that we cannot deny the importance of impression management in virtual
world. In order to hold a positive image of us we should use these techniques carefully.