Young Muslim Women’s Negotiation of Authenticity on Instagram

Abstract

This article addresses how Indonesian hijabers—a term for fashion-conscious hijab-wearing women—participate in expressing and negotiating their authentic selves through the photo-sharing culture on Instagram. Twenty-one hijabers’ self-portraits were examined through a digital ethnographic method that used semistructured face-to-face interviews and participant observations at various hijabers’ community events in Indonesia. Findings reveal that “being the real me” is the hijabers’ claim to project their self-portrait authenticity. This claim is shaped by Indonesian social norms and Islamic values. The hijabers are curating a version of authenticity that is designed to be culturally acceptable. Therefore, this study provides a new understanding of how Indonesian hijabers’ negotiation of authenticity on Instagram is subjected to a collectivistic culture.