SPIRITUALITET OCH INTUITIVA VIBES Tjejers strävan efter respektabilitet i ett digitalt rum

Abstract

On social media, girls create digital spaces where a distinctive spiritual culture emerges. This spiritual culture is therapeutic in nature, consisting of therapeutic compositions and happiness-generating templates that contribute to the girls' respectability by allowing them to take responsibility through their intuitive knowledge. The purpose of this study is to investigate how the pursuit of respectability is manifested in these digital spaces by examining spiritual expressions and exploring how participation in therapeutic culture online serves the attainment of respectability.

The study employs a participatory netnographic method, focusing on observations of LIVE broadcasts on TikTok. In these broadcasts, girls engage in various spiritual practices within a shared digital sphere. The observations are analyzed through the theoretical frameworks of Beverley Skeggs' concept of respectability and theories related to therapeutic culture, including happiness culture and therapeutic assemblage.

The findings reveal that both the girls hosting the LIVE broadcasts and those participating by commenting collaboratively create a digital culture through the exchange of advice. The study also demonstrates how girls invest in specific forms of cultural capital based on the accessibility of knowledge and the potential benefits it offers. These investments in capital and the pursuit of respectability in the digital realm serve as a substitute for the lack of agency experienced in their physical lives.