{"id":250,"date":"2019-05-05T23:55:03","date_gmt":"2019-05-05T15:55:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Curtin\/?p=250"},"modified":"2019-05-05T23:55:03","modified_gmt":"2019-05-05T15:55:03","slug":"platforms-such-as-facebook-has-caused-a-positive-impact-on-personal-relationships-in-todays-society","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Curtin\/2019\/05\/05\/platforms-such-as-facebook-has-caused-a-positive-impact-on-personal-relationships-in-todays-society\/","title":{"rendered":"Platforms such as Facebook has caused a positive impact on personal relationships in today\u2019s society"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Abstract<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This\npaper examines how social media has become the biggest medium of communication\nthroughout the world and how it had an impact on interpersonal communication\nand relationships. Social networking sites has changed the way people\ncommunicate and helped them to interact with others easily, without any\nbarriers. Online interactivity and communication are rapidly growing, hence\ndiminishing the amount of time spend on face-to-face human contact and increase\ntime spent on having more intimate conversation online. This paper mainly\nexamines how social networking sites has strengthen existing relationships; and\nhow it helps people to forge their ties with acquaintances hence, building a\nnew friendship\/relationship. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keywords: Social Networks, Relationship,\nSocial Media, Online Communication, Friendship, Social Networking Sites, Facebook<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Introduction<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Social\nmedia platforms have significantly changed the propagation of information by\nmaking it unimaginably simple to share and to assimilate information on the\nweb. (Akrimi & Khemakhem, 2012). Social media allow individuals to\ncommunicate with numerous people at the same time compared to the traditional\nmeans of communication, in this way, sharing of information become speedier and\neasier. The Web has revolutionized communications, to a degree that it is now\nthe most favored mode of communication. Nowadays, we are able to send\ninformation from one end of the world to another within a few seconds. Moreover,\nthe emergence of the Web has generated debates about how social relationships\nhas been affected by online communications. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nInternet has brought people close together in today\u2019s world since globalized\nsociety are now connected through the use of new technologies which has\neliminated all communication barriers. The top four social media platform that\nare changing human\u2019s mode of communication are Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and\nInstagram. Facebook became a pioneer in today\u2019s society by allowing individuals\nto connect with people all around the world. On the other hand, Instagram and\nSnapchat became very popular among younger generations and has consequently contributed\nto the shaping of the millennial culture. Moreover, the Web has changed the way\npeople communicate with their family members, life partners and friends.\nNowadays, individuals can handle their personal relationships by making use of\ndevices such as their smart phones, laptops or tablets. Moreover, it encourages\nthe creation and maintaining of emotional closeness between individuals who\ncommunicate through social network platforms. Without these communication tools\nit would be difficult for people to maintain a long-distance relationship with\ntheir family, life partner, friends and acquaintances. Individuals do not lose\nthe emotional closeness of their personal relationship when their friends or\nfamily members move abroad since they can still communicate with each other on\na daily basis through the use of social networking sites. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maintaining long-distance relationship\nthrough social networking sites<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Researchers\nsuch as Wellman & Gulia (1999) argued that the Web has not only enabled\npeople to interact with each other without having to meet each other in real\nlife on a daily basis but it has also enabled its users to keep in touch and\nnot losing any emotional connection when maintaining a long-distance\nrelationship. Other researchers also argue that the Web and face-to-face\ncontact has been enhanced and extended each other, instead of replacing one\nanother (Boase & Wellman, 2006). That is, the Internet has improved personal\nrelationships among individuals by allowing them to keep in touch with their\nfriends and relatives who are living far away from them as well as maintaining\nthe relationship with those who they meet frequently in real life. Materials\nfrom Pew Research Centre and American Life Panel (2000, 2002) reveal that women\nare more likely to keep contact and communicate with friends and family through\nsocial media compared to men. Women are often the one who maintain\nlong-distance contact with family, friends and relatives and preserve a\nstronger connection online with kin compared to men (Chen et al., 2002).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On-line\nstrong ties are often said to have many characteristics that are similar to\noff-line strong ties, that is, they promote recurrent, companionable contact that\nare voluntary (Wellman & Gulia, 1999). Social networking sites such as\nFacebook gave its users the opportunity to send messages, call or video call\nanyone across the world for free, therefore this has helped individuals to\nmaintain their personal relationship online whether they are distant or close\nin term of physical distance. Moreover, this new form of communication helps\nwith long-term contact, by preventing the loss of the tie that often\naccompanies geographical mobility (Aguiton & Cardon, 2007). In addition, Clifford\nStoll (1995, p.24) promote the idea that connection made online are illusory:\n“Electronic communication is an instantaneous and illusory contact that\ncreates a sense of intimacy without the emotional investment that leads to\nclose friendships.” That is, the Internet allow individuals to preserve\nexisting ties, often to reinforce them, and at the same time encourage them to\nforge their ties with acquaintances. As Stoll (1995) has argued, \u2018this sense of\nintimacy\u2019 that has been created online brings people who communicate through\nsocial media closer and help them to strengthen their relationships. Moreover,\nwhen an individual spends time on social network platforms, the amount of time\nthey spend on relatively unsocial activities, such as sleeping and watching TV,\nare decreased, therefore, we can say that this culture has encouraged its users\nto become more social. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teenagers and online communication<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Technology\nhas increasingly mediated the communication in interpersonal relationships. Social\nnetworking sites support people who are in a long-distance relationship, where\nthey lack face-to-face contact, to maintain their meaningful relationships\n(Baym et al., 2007). A study carried out by the UCLA<\/strong> defines the Web as \u2018a catalyst for creating and maintaining\nfriendships and family relationships\u2019 (UCLA Center for Communication Policy, 2003).\nSocial media strengthen social ties and help people become closer by allowing\nthem to make and stay in touch with friends. Moreover,  teens are the main users of social media, it\nmakes them feel more connected to their friends and they can get more information\nabout what is going on in their friends\u2019 lives through their smartphones.\nSocial networking sites also allow its user to make new friends online. People\nwho use social media are more likely to agree that they feel more connected to\ntheir friends than those who do not use a social network platform (Pew Research\nCenter, 2015). Social media platform like Facebook allows people to make new\nfriends without meeting the person face-to-face. Friendships are born easier\nwith these types of platform since people do not have to make much investment. Where\nfriendship beforehand demanded time, effort and communication skills, it has\nnow been simplified to only a click of a button to find friends on a social\nnetworking platform. Starting a new friendship can be quite difficult, especially\nfor people who are no longer in school or who do not have many co-workers to\ncommunicate with. Nonetheless, for shy persons and those in quests of new\nfriends, social networking can provide them with an easy way to make the first step\nto the creation of a new friendship. By merely clicking on the \u201cadd friend\u201d\nbutton, people can express that they are interested in getting to know someone,\nhence decreasing the barrier to friendship. This feature of social networking\nsites makes it easier for teenagers to communicate with their friends or to\nbuild friendships with their classmates who they are too shy to talk to in\nclass. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is easier to communicate with the\nopposite sex online<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some\nstudies, have revealed that people are more likely to keep contact with their\nfriends via an Internet connection rather than communicating with family\nmembers online (Chen et al., 2002; Dimmick et al., 2000). Moreover, other\nresearchers have found that friendships between men and women were more likely\nto happen in online context rather than in a face-to-face situation (Parks\n& Roberts, 1998). It is easier to make conversation with the opposite sex\nwhen there is no face-to-face interaction and your body language cannot be\nseen. Hence, it is made easier for shy persons to talk more freely via a\nvirtual context rather than having a real-life conversation with the same\nperson. Moreover, Ellison, Steinfield, and Lampe (2007) imply that social\nnetworking sites such as Facebook are often used to sustain existing offline\nrelationships or to strengthen offline relations, rather than being used to\nmeet and befriend new people. The people who add one another on social media\nmay possess weak ties such as being classmates or work colleagues who share\ncommon offline elements but are not that close to maintain a face-to-face\nconversation. Therefore, it is an opportunity for them to improve their\nrelationships through connections and communication on social media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On\nthe other hand, researchers such as Parks and Roberts (1998) have also found\nthat although offline relationships were somewhat more developed and involved more\nface-to-face interactions and time spend together, there were significantly no variances\nin the depth and breadth of interaction between online and offline\nrelationships. Other studies suggest that women have a tendency to give\nimportance to their close relationships more than men (Duck and Wright, 1993; Aukett\net al., 1988). Moreover, women have been discovered to be the more accurate senders\n(Buck et al., 1974) and receivers (Rosenthal et al., 1979; Hall, 1998) of\nnon-verbal means of communication. Nowadays, meeting someone and starting a\nrelationship through an online dating platform or through social media is seen\nas normal. Social networks help individuals to remove some social challenges,\nsuch as controlling the way people perceive them and what they want others to\nknow about them. It also provides the public with a sense of freedom and removes\nthe risk of being rejected by others. Social media allow its users to manage\ntheir personal information and allow people to know you on your own terms,\nwhich might be empowering and hence, encourage its users to take more risks when\nopening up and self-disclosing. Social networks also help people to connect\nwith other participants who share mutual acquaintances and helps them to build\nfriendships or romantic relationships.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Does the forging of relationships online have its drawbacks?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moreover,\nsocial networking sites help people to build closer relationships with one another\nby sharing information about themselves such as their likes and dislikes,\nconcerns and worries online. For people who find the sharing of information\nabout themselves challenging when in comes to face-to-face interaction, the\nabsence of physical presence online makes it easier for them to discuss these\nmatters with others through the Internet. For example, people who are anxious\nin social situations can easily disclose their personal information and\npractice their relational skills with friends when online. Social networks also\nhelp people to find support from other users, even from strangers. There are\nmany online support groups on the internet where the public can find\nfriendships and supports for the important times of their life. Moreover,\nfriendship can also be created through the online games available on social\nmedia such as 8-ball pool on Facebook, where individuals can play with anyone,\neven strangers, from across the world. Therefore, people playing the same game\nare more likely to make new friends while playing these social media games.\nSocial media games often involve interaction, competition and cooperation with other\nplayers, which often requires communication among the players to achieve the\ngame. This feature also encourages the participants to meet and socialize, even\nin an offline context by creating events where they can all play together or\nmeet to discuss about the game. Friendship formation and loose social ties can\nstrengthen among the users if they interact beyond the game through online\nchatting (Trepte, Reinecke & Juechems, 2012). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nstrengthening and formation of relationships and friendships online have its\ndrawbacks as well. Making affiliations through an electronic medium with\nstrangers by sharing personal information with people who communicate via a\npersona or fake account and trusting these strangers are frequent among\nteenagers (Wellman & Gulia, 1999). This behavior can have severe\nrepercussions on the privacy concerns and safety of the younger generations\n(Kornblum & Marklein, 2006; George, 2006). Usually, there are little to no\nverifications when people sign up to join social networking sites therefore it\nis easy for them to create fake persona and lie about their personal\ninformation online (Boyd & Ellison, 2007). People can create fake profiles\nand create fake connection with a series of other fake accounts to create an\nillusion of being a real person with real connections. As the main use of\nsocial networking sites is to help individuals to make new connections, teenagers\nmay trust these people and bond with them in an online context (Donath &\nBoyd, 2004). Moreover, spending too much time on social media may cause high\nlevels of physical isolation and encourage the absence of face-to-face\ncommunication which may end up in the deterioration of their real-life\nrelationships, hence affecting their face-to-face interaction with other\npeople.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conclusion<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To\nconclude, social networking sites such as Facebook do reinforce relationships\nand social ties as well as allowing its users to remove any communication\nbarriers. People can communicate and maintain relationships with their loved\nones even if they live across the world. The volume and frequency of social\nmedia users continue to grow as well as the amount of time spend on these\nsocial media platforms on a daily basis. More and more individual\u2019s confidence\nand self-esteem has been boosted online where they are now brave enough to make\nconversation which they would have otherwise not made during a face-to-face\ninteraction. However, social media should be used to a limit, and people should\nbe careful about the information they share online and who they share it with. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Abstract This paper examines how social media has become the biggest medium of communication throughout the world and how it had an impact on interpersonal communication and relationships. Social networking sites has changed the way people communicate and helped them to interact with others easily, without any barriers. Online interactivity and communication are rapidly growing,… Continue reading Platforms such as Facebook has caused a positive impact on personal relationships in today\u2019s society<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[83,99,100,95,21,52,42],"class_list":["post-250","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-social","tag-facebook","tag-friendship","tag-online-communication","tag-relationship","tag-social-media","tag-social-networking-sites","tag-social-networks"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Curtin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Curtin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Curtin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Curtin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/75"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Curtin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=250"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Curtin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":253,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Curtin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250\/revisions\/253"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Curtin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=250"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Curtin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=250"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Curtin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=250"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}