This article by Nicole B Ellison, Charles Steinfield and Cliff Lample looks at the benefits of social networking sites such as Facebook, Friendster and MySpace. It examines how these sites essentially boost social capital. Social capital refers to the connections within and between social networks centred around the idea that social networks have value. There are many benefits of a high social capital such as lower crime rates and more efficient financial markets. The research done for this article also found that Facebook usage had a positive impact on psychological well being. It provided greater benefits for those suffering from low self-esteem and low life satisfaction.
Social networking sites allow people to maintain connections with others. There are also many different types which can be centred around work, romance or a place for connecting those with shared interests. This article however deals with Facebook which allows us to interact with our offline friends online or meet new people. It was originally created to connect those at university in America but now has more than 21 million members worldwide. Although Facebook receives much negativity about privacy issues and identity presentation during the study for this article however it was shown that Facebook use among college students was significantly associated with measures of social capital. There were two hypothesis’ posed in this article the first being that,
The internet provides vast new ways of communication to keep in touch with those whom we have strong ties with. It is also a way to connect with other people which you would not have the opportunity to do if it were not for the internet and social networking sites like Facebook. It is these connections that result in an increased social capital. In fact a 2006 survey reported that people who used the internet were more likely to have a larger network of close ties to those who did not use the internet. However as online and offline connections are relatively the same on Facebook it is unclear how social capital can occur in this situation. A second hypothesis was then proposed,
“Intensity of Facebook use will be positively associated with individuals’ perceived bonding social capital”.
Online social network sites have become increasingly popular for those who have difficulties forming and maintaining strong or weak ties. Studies have shown that these sites can help those to form ties because the can lower barriers to interaction and encourage self-disclosure. To test this hypothesis the Facebook intensity scale was created (see tables in article). It was found that there was definitely a positive relationship between certain kinds of Facebook use and the maintenance and creation of social capital. Internet use alone did not predict social capital accumulation, but intensive use of Facebook did.
Link to this article : http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1083-6101.2007.00367.x/full
thts acto reli interestin! fair play findin it!
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