EXTENDED IDENTITY AND ITS COSTS IN THE DIGITAL AGE

The article presents a comprehensive interdisciplinary analysis of the phenomenon of «expand-ed identity», a new paradigm of selfconstruction that has emerged in the context of global digitalization of social life. The research synthesizes approaches from sociology, psychology, and philosophy to study how online platforms, social networks, and algorithms not only become tools of self-expression, but actively form the core of a modern person's personality. The article explores the dual nature of this phenomenon: its potential for creating new forms of social connection and at the same time the sys-temic risks it generates for mental health, authenticity and social integrity of a person