The Netnography of the Human Experience in Encountering Blockchain Technology

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

1 Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Tehran. Tehran, Iran

2 Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

10.22059/jisr.2025.384138.1548

Abstract

With the amazing growth and expansion of technology in the present day, the relationship between humans and technology is becoming more complicated every day, and it also affects the social life of humans. The ethnographic investigation of individuals’ narratives regarding their perceptions of life with these emergent technologies in the context of their personal experiences is the primary challenge of our forthcoming research.
In this research, we define emerging technologies as those that are specifically associated with the blockchain economy. Our objective is to examine the relationship between humans and these new generation technologies in order to conduct an analysis of the new world that has emerged and the requirements that it imposes. Consequently, we will investigate it from an ontological and epistemological perspective.
In this regard, we conducted an analysis of the network of active users in the blockchain sector on Instagram. We identified nine influential and active users in this field and analyzed their virtual profiles using netnography. These perspectives were classified into three conceptual categories: 1) revolutionary perspectives, 2) neutral perspectives, and 3) hybrid perspectives.
Ultimately, it appears that the revolutionary potential of blockchain is not sufficient to completely alter the extensive structures of the capitalist system and establish a new financial system, as indicated by the anthropological analysis of these conceptual categories. Rather, the establishment of this current structure results in the enhancement of human life and social affairs.

Keywords

References

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