The Theory of Shadow Bodies: The Conflict Between Social Invisibility and Digital Representation

Yıl 2025, Cilt: 18 Sayı: 2, 959 - 989, 15.10.2025

Arif Akbaş

https://doi.org/10.18094/josc.1680839

Öz

This study proposes a sociological theory concerning the representation of the human body in the digital age: the Shadow Bodies Theory. Positioned at the intersection of social invisibility and digital representation, the theory gains significance by interrogating how individuals’ physical presence becomes increasingly obscured in the social sphere, while being simultaneously reconstructed through digital imagery. Constructed on the basis of qualitative research methodology, the study employs descriptive analysis and theoretical modeling techniques. As its empirical ground, the study draws upon scholarly literature on human-machine interaction, reports published by various ethics committees on digital privacy and algorithmic transparency, and recent findings on the societal impacts of digital algorithms. Throughout the analytical process, key concepts such as bodily representation in digital platforms, data identity, and algorithmic visibility are examined within a sociological framework. The research demonstrates how digital media reproduce mechanisms of social exclusion. The term Shadow Body refers to the digitally reconstituted yet fragile representation of an individual who is physically present but socially obscured. The findings reveal that although digital representation carries a liberating potential, it simultaneously generates new regimes of control, classification, and exclusion. In this regard, the theory calls for a critical rethinking of visibility and representation in the digital era. The study aims to uncover how individuals’ states of social invisibility are reproduced through digital technologies, and how this process lays the groundwork for novel forms of surveillance and marginalization.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Shadow body , Digital representation , Social invisibility , Algorithmic transparency , Data identity

Gölge Bedenler Kuramı: Toplumsal Görünmezlik ve Dijital Temsiliyet Arasındaki Çatışma

Öz

Bu çalışma, dijital çağda insan bedeninin temsiline dair toplumsal bir kuram önerisi sunmaktadır: Gölge Bedenler Kuramı. Toplumsal görünmezlik ile dijital temsiliyet arasındaki gerilim ekseninde şekillenen kuram, bireylerin fiziksel varlıklarının toplumsal alanda nasıl silikleştiğini ve dijital imgeler yoluyla nasıl yeniden inşa edildiğini sorgulamasıyla önem kazanmaktadır. Nitel araştırma yöntemine dayalı olarak yapılandırılan bu çalışma, betimsel analiz ve kuramsal modelleme teknikleriyle ilerlemiştir. Veri zemini olarak insan-makine etkileşimine dair bilimsel literatür, çeşitli etik kurulların dijital mahremiyet ve algoritmik şeffaflık üzerine yayımladığı bildiriler ile dijital algoritmaların toplumsal etkilerine dair güncel raporlar kullanılmıştır. Analiz sürecinde dijital platformlarda bedenin temsil biçimleri, veri kimliği (data identity) ve algoritmik görünürlük gibi kavramlar sosyolojik bir çerçevede ele alınmış; dijital mecraların toplumsal dışlanmayı nasıl yeniden ürettiği ortaya konmuştur. Gölge Beden, fiziksel olarak var olan ama toplumsal olarak silikleşmiş bireyin, dijitalde yeniden ama kırılgan biçimde temsiline işaret etmektedir. Çalışmanın sonucunda, dijital temsiliyetin özgürleştirici bir potansiyel barındırsa da yeni türden bir denetim, sınıflandırma ve dışlama rejimi yarattığı tespit edilmiştir. Bu bağlamda kuram, dijital çağda görünürlük ve temsil ilişkilerini yeniden düşünmeyi gerekli kılmaktadır. Araştırma, bireylerin toplumsal alanda görünür olmama hâlinin, dijital teknolojiler aracılığıyla nasıl yeniden üretildiğini ve bu sürecin yeni türden denetim ile dışlama biçimlerine nasıl zemin hazırladığını ortaya koymayı amaçlamaktadır.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Gölge beden , Dijital temsiliyet , Toplumsal görünmezlik , Algoritmik şeffaflık , Veri kimliği

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