Digital Visibility and Symbolic Capital Accumulation in Social Media—An Analysis Based on Capital Theory and Self-Presentation Theory

Abstract

In the social media environment, interaction metrics enable the datafication of social attention, and digital visibility becomes a critical resource affecting individual influence. Through Bourdieu's capital theory and Goffman's self-presentation theory, this study finds that visibility is the product of the interaction between platform algorithm allocation and user strategic presentation, and sustained attention can be converted into symbolic capital and can be monetized. However, visibility competition may trigger risks such as attention anxiety and digital inequality, which need to be addressed through algorithm governance, media literacy, and other measures. This study, to some extent, extends the explanatory power of classical theories in the digital environment and provides a new perspective for understanding digital social stratification.