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TITLE/TOPIC: Social Networking

PROBLEM STATEMENT: The impacts of social networking sites on

the social life, of students of St Stephens College, between the

ages of 11- 18yrs?

INTRODUCTION:

Only recently in Trinidad and Tobago have social networking become a

prominent issue. Great deals of speculation have been made about the

impacts of social networking sites (SNS) such as Facebook, MySpace, and

Twitter on users lives particularly on youths. Some fear that SNS would

diminish proper communication skills, human relationships and contacts, as

well as cause social seclusion. However others believe that with the advent of

social networking sites especially the modern day marvel Facebook, thisfacility could be described as a social utility that helps people communicate

faster and more efficiently with their friends, family and co-workers all over

the world. As could be expected, researchers have begun to put to empirical

test these claims, reaching a more balanced understanding of SNS.

The research which this study would pursue investigates both the positive and

negative impacts of social networking on youth, with emphasis on security,

communication skills, and formal education. The age group to be studied is

between 11 to 18 years, while the physical space of the research focus is St.

Stephens College, Craignish Village, Princes Town, Trinidad.

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The purpose of this study is to discover the extent of the influence of social

networking sites on the social lives of youths and to assess the involvement of

parents in their childs use of social networking sites. This will serve to

facilitate the evaluation of beliefs made by individuals about the pros and

cons of social networking.

The value of the research would be to help parents and guardians to be more

aware of the impacts of social networking on the lives of their children and as

such monitor their childrens use of these sites more stringently. It can also

help youths to be more mindful of how these sites should be used to their

benefit without placing themselves and their future at risk.

Research questions:

1. What are the positive impacts of social networking on youths lives?

2. What are the negative impacts of social networking on youths lives?

3. How aware are parents are of their childs use of social networking

sites?

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LITERATURE REVIEW

Social networking sites are virtual communities (Lenhart and Madden, 2007).

Just like chat services, SNS incorporate a list of other users with whom

individuals can share a connection. But unlike any other web service, SNS

allow individuals to make visible their list of connections to others and to

traverse their social networks (Boyd & Ellison, 2007). Hence, more than other

virtual communities born online, SNS are usually online communities created

and maintained to reflect offline relationships.

Social networks are also being used by teachers and students as a

communication tool. Because many students are already using a wide-range

of social networking sites, teachers have begun to familiarize themselves with

this trend and are now using it to their advantage. Teachers and professors

are doing everything from creating chat-room forums and groups to extend

classroom discussion to posting assignments, tests and quizzes, to assisting

with homework outside of the classroom setting. Social networks are also

being used to foster teacher-parent communication. These sites make it

possible and more convenient for parents to ask questions and voice concerns

without having to meet face-to-face.

"Benniger (1987) describes how mass media has gradually replaced

interpersonal communication as a socializing force. Further, social networking

sites have become popular sites for youth culture to explore themselves,

relationships, and share cultural artifacts". Many teens and social networking

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users may be harming their interpersonal communication by using sites such

as Facebook and MySpace. Stated by Baroness Greenfield, an Oxford

University Neuroscientist, "My fear is that these technologies are infantilizing

the brain into the state of small children who are attracted by buzzing noises

and bright lights, who have a small attention span and who live for the

moment." The convenience that social network sites give users to

communicate with one another can also damage their interpersonal

communication. Sherry Turkle, the founder and director of the MIT Initiative

on Technology and Self, stated, Networked, we are together, but so lessened

are our expectations of each other that we feel utterly alone. And there is the

risk that we come to see others as objects to be accessed--and only for the

parts we find useful, comforting, or amusing. Furthermore, social network

sites can create insincere friendships, Turkle also noted, They nurture

friendships on social-networking sites and then wonder if they are among

friends. They become confused about companionship.

Parents are unaware of the dangers their children face by posting details

about themselves on social networking sites, according to research

commissioned by Ofcom.

The survey of 5,000 adults and 3,000 children found that nearly half of

children aged between eight and 17 have a profile on one or more of the

popular social networking sites. Despite two-thirds of parents saying they set

rules for their children regarding the use of social networking sites, one in five

parents said they were unaware that their child may have made their profile

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public. (http://www.computeractive.co.uk/ca/news/1911962/children-putting-

danger-social-networking-sites#ixzz1f25sgAHt)

Privacy concerns with social networking services have been raised growing

concerns amongst users on the dangers of giving out too much personal

information and the threat ofsexual predators. According to a study

conducted by the information Commissioners Office (ICO) (2006), more than

half of those social network users polled revealed that the majority of their

information was available for public consumption on a social networking page.

Citizens and governments have been concerned by a misuse by child and

teenagers of social networking services, in particular in relation to online

sexual predators. A 2008 panel concluded that technological fixes such as

age verification and scans are relatively ineffective means of apprehending

online predators.

A common misuse of social networking sites such as Facebook is that it is

occasionally used to emotionally abuse individuals. Online bullying, also called

cyber-bullying, is a relatively common occurrence and it can often result in

emotional trauma for the victim. Depending on the networking outlet, up to

39% of users admit to being cyber-bullied. Danah Boyd, a researcher of

social networks quotes a teenager in her article, Why Youth (Heart) Social

Network Sites. The teenager expresses frustration towards networking sites

http://www.computeractive.co.uk/ca/news/1911962/children-putting-danger-social-networking-sites#ixzz1f25sgAHthttp://www.computeractive.co.uk/ca/news/1911962/children-putting-danger-social-networking-sites#ixzz1f25sgAHthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privacy_concerns_with_social_networking_serviceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sexual_predatorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technological_fixhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facebookhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyber-bullyinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danah_Boydhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privacy_concerns_with_social_networking_serviceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sexual_predatorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technological_fixhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facebookhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyber-bullyinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danah_Boydhttp://www.computeractive.co.uk/ca/news/1911962/children-putting-danger-social-networking-sites#ixzz1f25sgAHthttp://www.computeractive.co.uk/ca/news/1911962/children-putting-danger-social-networking-sites#ixzz1f25sgAHt

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like MySpace because it causes drama and too much emotional stress. There

are not many limitations as to what individuals can post when online.

Individuals are given the power to post offensive remarks or pictures that

could potentially cause a great amount of emotional pain for another

individual.

Social networking can also affect the extent to which a person feels lonely. In

a Newsweek article, Johannah Cornblatt explains Social-networking sites like

Facebook and MySpace may provide people with a false sense of connection

that ultimately increases loneliness in people who feel alone. John T.

Cacioppo, a neuroscientist at the University of Chicago, claims that social

networking can foster feelings of sensitivity to disconnection, which can lead

to loneliness. However some scholars have expressed that concerns about

social networking are often exaggerated and poorly researched.

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RESEARCH DESIGN

In this research paper I will be using quantitative data. Quantitative

data usually takes the form of statistical or numerical information. My main

reason for choosing to employ the use of this type of data is the fact that

quantitative research facilitates theory formation because as a large

amount of data is collected the data can display cause and correlation and

therein makes the formation of theory is possible. The use of this type of

data is also advantageous in that it provides objectivity; therefore

respondents will not in any way be influenced by my personal views.

The instrument used to collect data was questionnaires. A

questionnaire is a number of preset questions that can contain open-

ended, fixed choice or a combination of both types of questions. 54

students (27 girls and 27 boys- 6 from each age group ranging from 11-19

years old) were chosen by stratified random sample from St Stephens

College from forms 1 to 6. They were approached individually and asked

whether they would like to participate in the study. All agreed. A 17 item

questionnaire was administered to all students on the 29th of February

during the lunch break and was collected after school. 15 items were of

forced-choice type and two were open-ended.

The advantages of the questionnaire are that the data can be easily

tabulated, measured and analyzed, and they are easy to administer.

However some disadvantages are that fixed choice questions can possibly

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force a respondent to choose an answer that does not capture his/her

feelings about an issue and that some respondents may provide erroneous

information or treat the issue too lightly. However these problems were

overcome by incorporating open ended questions in my questions and

secondly in order to prevent respondents from treating the issue lightly I

made an effort to impress upon the respondents the importance of the

research and the necessity for them to answer all questions honestly and

seriously.

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DATA ANALYSIS

Fig.1

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Figure 2. Table showing the association of youths with social

networking sites

AGE GROUPS

PERCENTAGE

On A Social Networking

Site

Not On A Social

Networking Site

11-13 100 0

14-16 94.4 5.6

17-19 83.3 16.7

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.

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40%

Public

Partially private

Private

30%

40%

30%

BAR GRAPH SHOWING HOW THE STUDENTS PROFILE WERE SETUP ON SNS

Public Partially private Private

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INTERPRETATION OF FINDINGS

F

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