Cyberhero Archetype

Dr. Klisanin is currently exploring the rise of a new form of everyday heroism: cyberheroism. While a great deal of research and media attention has been paid to cyberbullying, very little has been paid to the positive ways people are using the Internet on behalf of others.  Dr. Klisanin believes that by giving attention to acts of cyberheroism, and promoting the cyberhero archetype we can create tremendous positive change in the world.

Cyberheroism involves acts of digital goodness particularly acts of digital altruism.  Digital altruism  includes 1) clicking on click-to-donate websites, such as found at Bhookh.com and Care2.com; 2) adding content to educational and informational websites such as Project Gutenberg and Wikipedia; 3) searching the web through websites such as Ripple and Goodsearch; 4) shopping through websites such as Goodshop and Product Red and 5) gaming at sites such as Conspiracy for Good,  TheBigTest.org and FreePoverty.com.

Dr. Klisanin began investigating cyberheroism as an archetype arising from digital altruism and other forms of digital goodness (e..g digital activism, e-philanthrophy). She presented her theoretical research at the annual convention of the American Psychological Association (APA) in August of 2010.  Further research was conducted in 2011 using a self-report questionnaire. The results of that research was presented at the APA convention in August  2011.

Dana believes cyberheroism is an important area of research because the 21st century needs new archetypal forms in order to address global challenges. Cyberheroism enables people to make a difference in the world, empowering even young children to take action on behalf of other people, animals, and the environment.

What are cyberheroes?

“As ideal forms, or archetypes, the cyberhero and cyberheroine represent individuals motivated to act on behalf of other people, animals, and the environment, using digital technology in the peaceful service of achieving humanity’s highest ideals and aspirations, i.e., world peace, social justice, environmental protection and planetary stewardship. The archetype is a transmodern synergy of three extant archetypes; two secular archetypes: the hero and the superhero; and one spiritual archetype: the saint or bodhisattva” (Klisanin, 2010).

Why do we need the cyberhero?

“If we lose the ability to imagine ourselves as heroes, and to understand the meaning of true heroism, our society will be poorer for it. But if we can reconnect with these ancient ideals, and make them fresh again, we can create a connection with the hero in ourselves. It is this vital, internal conduit between the modern work- a-day world and the mythic world that can prepare an ordinary person to be an everyday hero” (Franco & Zimbardo, 2006).

How can we make ancient ideals of heroism fresh again?

“The cyberhero is a 21st century archetype arising from an emergent “transmodern heroism”. In the 21st century it isn’t enough to wait for life to provide us with an opportunity to become a “hero” — Having inherited a world of mass graves and mass extinctions, transmodern heroism is about using the tools at hand, i.e., our digital technologies, to act NOW. It is about having the courage and fortitude to use the power of our own voices to speak on behalf of all living beings, particularly those with little or no voices of their own. Digital technologies are the “peace-sabers” of our century. They allow us to amplify our voices and to connect with humanitarians and environmentalists active in the field, enabling them to carry out their end of a common goal. Cyberheroing means using Internet technologies to benefit others. Ultimately, transmodern heroism has less to do with risking one’s life for another and everything to do with the ability to exchange oneself with the “other”; it is the death of selfishness and greed and the radical embrace of empathy, compassion, and simplicity. It is, above all, an archetype whose time has come.” (Klisanin, 2010).