ACTION CAMERAS AS SOCIAL FACILITATORS: AN ANALYSIS OF AMATEUR EXTREME MOTORCYCLE VIDEOS

Year 2018, Volume: 8 Issue: 4, 660 - 672, 01.10.2018

Önder M. Özdem

Abstract

In diverse social situations, individuals may find themselves as either actors or observers. As actors,
individuals may act alone or in the presence of others. Social facilitation theory focuses primarily on
how people react to being the focus of attention when performing a task. The theory proposes that the
presence of others may facilitate performance and vice versa. Advances in digital technologies point to
new recording and viewing options, such as action cameras and video sharing websites. This article
argues that for extreme actions performed without an audience, the presence of an action camera
allows for the controllable presence of potential future viewers. In order to show how action cameras
may function as a social facilitator, four extreme action videos on YouTube are analyzed in this
article. Video analyses show that action cameras are effective in drawing potential future viewers.
Action cameras can therefore be thought of as social facilitators of extreme actions.

Keywords

Action camera, social facilitation theory, recording technologies, extreme actions, motorcycle sports

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