Non-verbal communication in friendships and romantic relationships
SOCIAL NETWORKING EFFECTS 11
Running head: SOCIAL NETWORKING EFFECTS
The Impact of Social Networking Media on Adolescents
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The Impact of Social Networking Media on Adolescents
In recent years, a rapid increase in technology has changed the way people communicate and socialize. Social networking websites such as Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter among others have introduced a new form of communication to the masses, specifically, computer mediated communication. According to Livingstone (2008), social networking websites are popular to people of many different ages. However, primary users of such sites tend to be young people, adolescents in particular. Young people find that social networking websites offer ways of socializing that were not available to previous generations (Livingstone, 2008). As such, the way adolescents are becoming socialized is changing.
Some research suggests that there are unforeseen consequences associated with self disclosure via computer-mediated communication (McKenna & Bargh, 1999). A study by Valkenburg, Schouten, and Peter (2005) suggests that social networking websites have created virtual social communities in which individuals can socialize and experiment with identity creation and manipulation in ways that are entirely new and different in comparison to forms of socialization encountered prior to the expansion of social networking media. What remains unanswered, however, is what effect these new forms of socialization have on adolescents’ ability to socialize in face-to-face interactions. This paper explores this question through an examination of various interpersonal communication theories, including self-disclosure and social penetration, and how these theories might help explain the socialization process. From there, this paper examines how these socialization processes might differ in a computer mediated setting and what effect these difference might have on adolescents’ abilities to socialize in offline, face-to-face interactions. Before turning to these theoretical discussions, it is important to first demonstrate the extent to which social networking has permeated society.
Background and Need
Social networking website use rates have rapidly increased in recent years. Facebook, arguably the most popular social networking website, was created in 2004 and by 2007 had over 21 million members (Ellison, Steinfield, & Lampe, 2007). Soon after the website’s introduction, Facebook, originally created as a means for college students to connect with other college students, launched a second version of the site geared towards high school age users. Two thirds of Facebook users access the website daily, which results in 1.6 billion site visits per day (Ellison et al., 2007). With the digital divide becoming less and less apparent, internet use rates globally, even within technologically undeveloped countries, are climbing rapidly (Orchard & Fullwood, 2010). According to Orchard and Fullwood (2010), the amount of time internet users spend online, as well as the number of online services, forms of entertainment, and social networking forums has increased dramatically in recent years. Internet use for the purpose of socializing, according to Kraut, Patterson, Lundmark, Kiesler, Mukopadhyay, and Scherlis (1998), may take away from time internet users would spend socializing face-to-face or via more traditional means. With such a dramatic increase in the use of social networking media and obvious changes in the way people are socializing, further research about the impact of social networking media use on face-to-face interactions is certainly warranted.
Literature Review
In the following review, longstanding empirically supported communication theories and how they relate to both computer-mediated communication and traditional means of communication among adolescents are examined. Many modern communication theories were developed prior to the rise in popularity of social networking websites. As such, traditional communication theories will be looked at through a modern day lens. How adolescents become socialized both via online means and traditional means will be compared and contrasted, and the impact social networking website use has on traditional face-to-face relationships will be examined. Lastly, a hypothesis will be posited linking modern adolescents and their ability to socialize effectively face-to-face.
Self-Disclosure Theory
An important part of understanding the socialization process involves understanding how people get to know one another. A primary way this happens is through self-disclosure. Altman and Taylor (1975) describe self-disclosure as personal information communicated from one person to another. According to Altman and Taylor (1975), traditional thinking suggests that self-disclosure takes place at a somewhat gradual pace and that early interactions between strangers are somewhat superficial. It would seem that with the onset of computer-mediated communication, this trend of gradual self-disclosure is shifting and self-disclosure is taking place at a more rapid pace earlier in relationships. According to McKenna and Bargh (1999), computer-mediated communication forums offer adolescents a degree of anonymity that they would not otherwise have in face-to-face situations. McKenna and Bargh (1999) go on to state that this perceived anonymity, particularly amongst adolescents in marginalized groups, tends to accelerate the rate at which individuals self-disclose. In 1973, when self-disclosure theory was originally posited and found to have merit, the internet and social networking media were not available to adolescents. As such, self-disclosure today is significantly different than it was when it could take place only via more traditional means such as face-to-face interaction, phone conversations, and letter writing.
Furthermore, the information that is being disclosed via computer-mediated communication media is not always accurate. The anonymous veil the internet provides allows users to create identities and disclose information about themselves that may or may not be accurate. Valkenburg et al. (2005) found that young adolescents communicating online portrayed themselves as being older than they actually were, and that adolescents of varying ages portrayed themselves and disclosed information to others about themselves that would indicate that they were physically attractive in almost all cases. How do internet users know what they are being told is true and factual? Donath (2001) suggests that in the computer-mediated realm, it is exponentially more difficult to decipher fact from fiction due to a lack of traditional communication cues such as facial expression, nervous twitches, voice inflections, and other visual cues that cannot be viewed when communicating via the internet. Donath (2001) goes on to say that even the very identity of others on the internet is in question, whereas identity cannot be hidden or altered when communicating face-to-face.
Similarly, Cheung (2004) suggests that social networking website homepages provide adolescents with emancipatory benefits such as the ability to fabricate an identity. What potential implications does this data suggest when it comes time for a relationship to advance from an online relationship to a face-to-face relationship? In a broader sense, what potential societal ramifications could be brought about by the apparent trend that adolescents who use social networking media feel that it is acceptable to lie about their identity in an effort to win favor with others? According to Bandura (1989), the environment has a direct influence on the people within it. As such, it could be suggested that adolescents who engage in usage of social networking site are exposing themselves to an environment full of misrepresentation, exaggeration, and lying, and therefore are more likely to engage in these activities. The consequences of these actions are elaborated upon further in the next section.
Exposure to Social Networking Websites
As discussed previously, Altman and Taylor (1975) suggest that social penetration takes place at a gradual pace and that information disclosed between people early in relationships is very superficial. More personal, non-superficial information is disclosed only after a level of trust, liking, and informational reciprocity is established between people (Altman & Taylor, 1975). It is this gradual pace that creates strong bonds and ties between individuals. The internet, it would seem, is increasing the rapidity with which people self-disclose and social penetration is taking place at a more rapid pace in online relationships. Perceived intimacy amongst adolescents who are actively using social networking websites is being arrived at more rapidly according to Ellison et al. (2007). Ellison et al. (2007) also state that social capital, or the accumulation of friends and acquaintances, is more easily acquired by adolescents who utilize social networking websites. Where this concept sounds positive on the surface, do these relational acquaintances and this perceived intimacy truly translate into meaningful relationships? According to Kraut et al. (1998), increased internet use amongst adolescents leads to social withdrawal and avoidance. Kraut et al. (1998) also state that relationships formed or maintained online are often weaker relationships in comparison to those maintained physically or via face-to-face means. Adolescents and/or college-age individuals who attempt to maintain strong relationships via social networking sites are replacing strong relationships with weaker ones (Kraut et al., 1998). Similarly, Thurlow, Lengel, and Tomic (2004) state that computer-mediated communication is inherently anti-social and that cyberspace actually pulls people away from traditional relationships.
The meaning behind the act of self-disclosure is somewhat minimized when self-disclosing online. Studies show that adolescents who would otherwise avoid situations that call for self-disclosure feel more comfortable disclosing information via social networking websites like Facebook because of the degree of separation afforded by such websites (Ellison et al., 2007). Traditional thinking about social penetration and self-disclosure suggests that it is not simply the information being disclosed but the act of disclosing itself that helps to build intimacy between people (Altman & Taylor, 1975). When the importance of the act is removed due to the medium through which people are communicating, the act does not have as much impact and weaker bonds between people are formed (Kraut et al., 1998).
In summary, social networking media offer an easier means for adolescents to become acquainted (Ellison et al., 2007). However, the challenges associated with becoming socialized, such as face-to-face self-disclosure and the gradual process of social penetration, have relevance in relation to the creation of strong relationships (Altman & Taylor, 1975). There is very little commitment involved in online relationships in comparison to physical or face-to-face relationships. Studies suggest that the strength and nature of relationships are positively influenced when there is a high degree of relational commitment (Altman & Taylor, 1975). Conversely, relationships with low commitment do not achieve the same levels of intimacy in comparison to relationships with high levels of commitment. This data suggests that the lack of commitment associated with adolescent relationships formed or maintained via social networking websites leads to weaker relationships. It also suggests an inability of some adolescents to maintain positive face-to-face relationships when said adolescents are overexposed to social networking media. As such, the following hypothesis is posited:
H1: As social networking website use increases in adolescents, their ability to socialize successfully in face-to-face situations decreases.
References
Altman, I. & Taylor, D. A. (1975). Self-disclosure as a function of reward-cost outcomes. Sociometry, 38(1), 18-31.
Bandura, A. (1989). Human agency in social cognitive theory. American Psychologist, 44(9), 1175-1184.
Cheung, C. (2004). Identity construction and self-presentation on personal homepages: Emancipatory potentials and reality constraints. In D. Guantlett & R. Horsley (Eds.), Web studies (pp. 53-68). New York: Oxford.
Donath, J. S. (2001). Being real. In K. Goldberg (Ed.), The robot in the garden: Telerobotics and telepistemology in the age of the internet (pp. 297-311). Cambridge: MIT Press.
Ellison, N. B., Steinfield, C., & Lampe, C. (2007). The benefits of facebook “friends:” Social capital and college students’ use of online social network sites. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 12, 1143-1168.
Kraut, R., Patterson, M., Lundmark, V., Kiesler, S., Mukopadhyay, T., & Scherlis, W. (1998). Internet paradox: A social technology that reduces social involvement and psychological well-being? American Psychologist, 53(9), 1017-1031.
Livingstone, S. (2008). Taking risky opportunities in youthful content creation: Teenagers’ use of social networking sites for intimacy, privacy and self-expression. New Media Society, 10(3), 393-411.
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Orchard, L. J., & Fullwood, C. (2010). Current perspectives on personality and internet use. Social Science Computer Review, 28(2), 155-169.
Thurlow, C., Lengel, L. & Tomic, A. (2004). Computer-mediated communication: Social interaction and the internet. Los Angeles, CA: Sage Publications.
Valkenburg, P. M., Schouten, A. P., & Peter. J. (2005). Adolescents' identity experiments on the internet. New Media and Society, 7, 383-402.
