Following

SYSTEMS 29 DIGITAL RITUALS
DOMAIN THE SIMULATION

DEFINITION:

A symbolic digital action through which an individual establishes an ongoing attention relationship with a person, creator, organization, identity, community, platform, or signal source in order to receive future updates, activities, communications, or content.

FUNCTION:

Transforms interest into sustained attention by creating a persistent connection between an observer and a source of signals.

EXAMPLES:

Social media follows
Creator follows
Influencer follows
Brand follows
Community follows
Public figure follows
Platform subscriptions

NOTES:

Following may indicate curiosity, admiration, interest, affiliation, loyalty, observation, monitoring, or community participation. Following does not necessarily imply agreement or support.

CONTROL TEXT OBSERVATION:

Attention becomes structured through recurring relationships. Following functions as an attention-allocation mechanism that links individuals to ongoing streams of signals. Through following, audiences become connected to identities, updates become expected, and participation becomes continuous rather than isolated. Following creates the pathways through which digital attention flows over time.