Face and the Dynamics of Its Construction: A Relational and Multilayered Perspective

This article proposes a new understanding of the concept of face as coconstructed and characterized by various and not always polarized dynamics, such as gain/loss. In elaborating on this conceptual frame, I revisit Goffman's work on social appraisal and argue it is marked by a shift from an expositional to a relational approach. Using this reading of Goffman, together with characteristics of the Chinese concept of face, I analyze interview data about users' interpretations, motivations, and intentions behind public exchanges of information on Facebook. The data illustrate both interactive processes of gradual acquisition/erosion of mien‐tzu and loss of lien.