CONNECTING THROUGH FACEBOOK: THE INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL NETWORKING ON COMMUNICATION

Abstract and Thesis Statement The current popularity of social networking has been cited in numerous recently published studies and articles and while the majority of users of these types of sites are young adults, other age groups are also showing increasing spikes in usage. I will argue that while modes of communicating using technology such as text messaging, e-mail and instant messaging remain dominant forms of interaction, messaging on the social-networking site; particularly on the popular site Facebook; has joined this group as another primary form of communication. I will further argue that this phenomenon will continue to have a lasting effect on human ideas about how to communicate with one another, both positively and negatively. Further discussion will look at how this idea has affected interpersonal communications by altering the way that people interact with one another; both positively and negatively, citing statistical data compiled from various sources, as well as small survey results collected from users of the site. The widespread use of communicating using networks will be compared to that of text messaging, telephone use and even television watching, to demonstrate the effect the sites are having on social habits. I will also investigate the ways in which people are choosing to communicate on the site and consider whether that decision is out of accessibility or preference to the format, citing ideas put forth by current and past technology scholars and writers.

Grantor dc:publisher

Wake Forest University

Year dc:date.issued

2009

Author dc:creator

• Tyson, Jason

• Media and communication studies

Language dc:language.iso

en_US

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/10339/14774

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:wakespace.lib.wfu.edu:10339/14774