The Search for a New Identity: Post-Organ Transplant Recipients and the Internet

Abstract

At its core, the Internet is a communication medium. As such, it can enable social interactions between people in different parts of the world and at different times. The last technological innovation that changed the way we communicate so drastically was the telephone. Its social impact has been dramatic and the Internet is already influencing our lives just as significantly. In this chapter I describe the use of a small part of the Internet by a specific social group. I will discuss the issues surrounding the use of an Internet-based newsgroup dedicated to organ transplantation. My observations will primarily deal with organ transplant recipients and their use of this newsgroup to define a new identity for themselves after the disorienting lifesaving procedure of a foreign organ grafted onto their bodies.