Adolescent Girls’ Expression on Web Home Pages: Spirited, Somber, and Self-Conscious Sites

A predominant theme evident in many recent discussions of American girlhood is that self-expression is critical for girls’ healthy development (see Brown & Gilligan, 1992; Furger, 1998; Phillips, 1998; Pipher, 1994; Taylor, Gilligan, & Sullivan, 1995). Girls appear to benefit from access to “safe spaces” where they feel comfortable expressing both who they are and who they wish to become (Furger,1998). Historically, however, sites for girls’ self-expression have been sparse (Pipher, 1994; Taylor, Gilligan, & Sullivan, 1995). Adolescence, in particular, marks a time period during which girls often struggle to find arenas where they may speak their minds without threat of damaging relationships. Adolescent girls1 (see Lerner, 1993) learn from friends, media, and personal experience that speaking up can get them in trouble with teachers, worry their parents, and endanger their friendships (Orenstein, 1994; Phillips, 1998; Pipher, 1994). Many censor themselves to navigate more safely through a society that expects certain culturally defined and gender-appropriate behaviors (Pastor, McCormick, & Fine, 1996; Phillips, 1998). The process of self-silencing and subsequent missed opportunities for self-validation can become cyclical, driving girls further “underground” (Taylor, Gilligan, & Sullivan, 1995).