Professional Identity Communication of Remote Workers in Palu City: An Identity Based Analysis
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.22487/ejk.v13i1.2789Keywords:
Remote work, Professional identity, Communication Theory of Identity, Palu City, Digital communicationAbstract
Remote workers in Palu City face unique challenges such as unreliable digital infrastructure, frequent power outages, unstable internet, limited co-working spaces, and local social stigma toward remote employment. This study aims to analyze how these workers communicate and negotiate their professional identity in the global labor market. Using a qualitative case study approach and the Communication Theory of Identity (CTI) framework, data were collected through in-depth interviews with three purposively selected informants, participatory observation, and digital document analysis. Findings reveal that remote workers in Palu construct a resilient hybrid (local-global) professional identity through the dynamic interpenetration of CTI’s four layers: personal, enactment, communal, and relational. Despite infrastructural constraints, strategic digital communication enables effective identity negotiation. The study concludes that professional identity in this peripheral urban context is dynamically formed through communicative negotiation across CTI layers.
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