Effective Use of Social Networking And Why College Students Should Care

1. Effective Use of Social NetworkingAnd Why College Students Should Care By Todd Euglow Echarial Gaines Sarah Gray Caleb Jobe

3. Overview of the Issue Social networking sites have become a staple for the higher education community. These sites are online places where a student can create a profile and build a personal network that connects him or her to others across the hall or around the world. Facebook is the world’s largest social networking site, currently 500 million people are active users In the United States the number reached just over 206 million, 68% of the US population The fastest growing demographic is 18 to 24 year olds, a 74% increase in 2011 (onlineschools.org, 2011) Social Networking Sites • Facebook, MySpace, Friendster, LiveJournal, and Google+ The Issues • Students are abusing themselves and others through their online postings • Lack of privacy • Limiting the use of technical and interpersonal communication skills *** With projections of the 1 billionth user in 2012, a mere 300 million from today’s number, it is becoming more important that schools help their students to learn what is appropriate and inappropriate content and how social networking sites can be used safely and effectively to benefit those students’ futures.

4. Cisco Connected World Technology Report Taken from http://www.cisco.com/en/US/netsol/ns1120/index.html#~2011

5. The Setting Missouri State University, classified by the Carnegie Classification System • Four year or above • Large • Public institution • Student population of 20,371 • High Undergraduate population • Drawing highly from residential student admissions Introduction of the Intervention • Student Orientation Advisement and Registration (SOAR) • Fall GEP 101and UHC 110 classes • Residence Halls • Student Organizations

6. Review of the Literature

7. Review of Literature Impact of internet on sociability: Time-dairy findings • Results from Nie and Hillygus’s findings differentiate between when and where internet use deters face-to-face interactions. Internet use at home and during the weekends have a stronger negative impact on the reduced time spent with family and friends as well as the time spent participating in social activities, more so than internet use at work or during the weekdays. These findings offer support for the displacement theory of internet use which simply means time online is largely an “a-social” activity that competes as opposed to complementing face-to-face time. Friend me or you’ll strain us: Understanding negative events that occur over social networking sites • This article investigates personal accounts from users who have experienced negative events. The three most commonly experienced negative event types include ignoring or denying friend requests,, deleting public messages or identification tags that might be detrimental for one’s reputation/character, and identifying ranking disparities on “Top Friends” applications. In retrospect, does any of the events described in Tokunaga’s article applicable in your life with your own SNS accounts?

8. Review of Literature (cont.) Sociability, interpersonal relations, and the internet: reconciling conflicting findings Nie focused on the internet’s impact on the quantity and quality of interpersonal communication and sociability. The distinction between online relationships versus those performed in person was that online friendships held more restrictions than those supported by physical proximity. This is not to say that online relationships are insignificant, but because online friends are not in a person’s physical surroundings, rendering support is less available (Nie, 2001). The Hidden Problem with Twitter - The Oxford University Press has been studying the language of Twitter for six months. Compared to formal writing, the casual lingo of Twitter includes a greater frequency of “OK” and “f***.” So here’s the question: Is Twitter, along with other SNS, contributing to the destruction of language/writing skills among college students?

9. Theoretical Analysis Astin’s Involvement Theory Bronfenbrenner’s Developmental Ecology Theory

10. Astin’s Theory of Involvement Alexander Astin (1984) defined involvement as “the investment of physical and psychological energy in various activities” (p. 518). • Greater involvement = Greater benefit of experience Active Participation on Campus • Living in residence Halls • Working on campus • Professional Organizations or clubs • Intramural sports Behavior in Action • “The amount of student learning and personal development associated with any educational program is directly proportional to the quality and quantity of student involvement in that program” (Astin, 1984, p. 519). Student time as a Resource • A Nielson study, (Warren, 2009) indicates that an average internet user spends 68 hours on the social networking sites per month, about two hours and six minutes per day • According to Warren (2009) students are choosing to spend 2.1 hours, roughly one quarter of that free time logging into social networking sites like Facebook.

11. Involvement Theory (cont.) Social Networking Sites • These students are spending more time online, which leaves less time for them to attend campus functions, participate in sports, or even work to gain experience for future careers • They reconnect with old friends from high school and those that have moved away but neglect to find out the names of those who are right across the hall or to engage faculty outside of the classroom Misrepresentation of Identity • There seems to be a cognitive disconnect between students’ online activity and reality • “Contrary to predictions, expressing identity/opinions was rarely selected in responses to survey queries for reasons for using Facebook (26.37% reported “some” and 64.13% “not much”)” (Pempek, Yermolayeva, and Calvert, 2009, p. 231). Arthur Chickering’s Identity Development • Students who are unable to develop a sense of identity are unlikely to create meaningful relationships • If students cannot develop meaningful relationships they will be unable to create behaviors that will promote true engagement on campus

12. Bronfenbrenner’s Developmental Ecology • Why is developmental ecology important? • Individual’s are shaped by his or her environment • How he or she adapts is crucial • How are current campus ecologies related? • Foster/inhibit growth • Sets the tone for interactions

13. Bronfenbrenner’s Developmental Ecology (Contd.) • 4 Components • Process, Place, Context, Time • Interact in ways that promote/inhibit development • Focus is on the individual and how he or she connects to societal influences

14. Bronfenbrenner’s Developmental Ecology (Contd.) • Context is the most important component • Why? • Four types of systems • Microsystem • Mesosystem • Exosystem • Macrosystem

15. The Intervention Developmental Context Target Audience Intervention Goals Action Plan Rational Evaluation

16. Developmental Context • 4-year, public, master’s and bachelor’s granting institutions • Similar to Missouri State • Social media is found in almost all areas of campus • Bronfenbrenner’s Theory • Environmental context • Encouragement and departmental mandates • Exosystem

17. Developmental Context (Contd.) • Astin’s Theory • Impact on invovlement • First-year freshman • Lack of opportunities to establish meaningful involvement and relationship building opportunities • Comfort level of social networking

18. Target Audience • First-year freshman • New to campus environment • Reach them early • Have had limited opportunity to engage in meaningful interactions and develop relationships • Assist them avoiding the use of social networking as crutch

19. Intervention Goals • Foster growth of students mesosystems • Create meaningful face to face interactions • Educate students on proper SNS use • Help students find way to get involved at MSU

20. Action Plan • SOAR Educational Sessions • GEP 101 and UHC 110 Class Group Project • Residence Hall Programming • Student Activities Council SNS Forum

21. Rational The purpose of our intervention study is to raise awareness about how and why students should utilize social networking sites more effectively. If a student is not engaging in his or her environment properly, his or her development may be stunted due to a lack of communication with both peers and his or her surroundings. This intervention is pertinent to student growth because it is a modern exemplification of what Astin and Bronfenbfrenner aimed to avoid; stagnant students. Through the articles used in the review of the literature, in addition to Astin’s and Bronfenbrenner’s theories it is clear to see that if students limit or eliminate face-to-face interactions, they may lose the ability to (a) establish meaningful relationships; and (b) maintain proper writing and speaking skills. By raising awareness early on during SOAR, GEP classes, Student Activities Counsel forums, etc., this intervention will encourage the proper use of social media on college campuses.

22. Evaluation Plan • Questionnaire before and after the SOAR education sessions. • Focus Groups with • Freshman Student • Residence Hall RA’s • GEP 101 and UHC 110 teachers

23. Conclusion

24. References