Study Finds Social Media is Actually Social
In our society, there's an image of a computer nerd as this sad, pale, and lonely guy sitting in the dark gazing at a glowing screen. As it turns out, that's just an image and it's far from the truth. The reality is that most technology users are perfectly well-adjusted and social creatures. In fact, those who surf the web and use their mobile phones may actually be more social and better connected to the world at large than those who don't.
According to a new study from Pew Internet and American Life Project, technology does not lead to social isolation, as many often suspected. Instead, researchers found that online participation and mobile phone usage leads to people having larger and more diverse core discussion networks. (Discussion networks are defined as being the places where we can discuss "important matters" with friends and confidants.)
Internet Use and Social Media
That's not to say that there aren't some technology addicts that aren't social isolated - around 6% of the adult online population would fit in this category, having no one with whom they can talk about those important matters and who say they don't have anyone "especially significant" in their life. However, this figure (the 6%) has not grown as access to technology has grown over the years - it has remained virtually unchanged since 1985. This points to the fact that perhaps those who are socially isolated individuals would be so anyway, regardless of what sorts of tools are provided to them, be those mobile phones, PCs with internet access, etc.
For the majority of the online population, technology - and especially social media - has led to more diverse networks than we've ever had before. The report notes that those who participate in social networking services such as Facebook for example, are more likely to interact with people from different backgrounds, different races, different political parties, etc. Specifically, blogging and general internet use was tied to having more racially diverse networks while online photo sharing was tied to having more diverse political discussion partners.
Those who use the internet tend to have 15% more network ties who aren't family members and those who use instant messaging services have 19% more non-kin members in their core networks.
Mobile Phone Use
Along these same lines, the ubiquity of mobile phones hasn't led to decreased face time with family and friends, but just the opposite. On average, a person spends 195 days of the year having mobile phone contact with others, but face-to-face interactions occur on about 210 days per year. In addition, mobile users have around 15% more family members with whom they can discuss important matters and tend to have 25% more core network members who are not family members. Overall, those who use mobile phones have core networks that are 12% larger than those who don't.
Despite all this good news about how technology leads to having larger, more diverse networks, the researchers also found that our networks' size has actually shrunk over the years. Since 1985, there has been a decrease of about 1/3 in their size. The researchers don't suggest any specific reasons for this shrinkage, but they do point out that they can now rule out one possibility for sure: technology.
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.................................................. SHOCK... I mean, are they sure?
Posted by: Johnny Worthington
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November 5, 2009 6:06 AM
but does it involve media?
Posted by: Mike Nencetti
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November 5, 2009 6:06 AM
Isn't social media JUST for talking about social media and technology... I suggest we weigh this study against a duck
Posted by: Johnny Worthington
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November 5, 2009 6:07 AM
Ducks are social.
Posted by: Mike Nencetti
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November 5, 2009 6:08 AM
They are also delicious
Posted by: Johnny Worthington
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November 5, 2009 6:08 AM
So can I assert social media is delicious?
Posted by: Amit Morson
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November 5, 2009 6:10 AM
This article doesn't even mention Twitter's new list feature or declare any service dead... C'mon Sarah, you can do better than this :P
Posted by: Johnny Worthington
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November 5, 2009 6:11 AM
Amit... Yes, it's a buffet
Posted by: Johnny Worthington
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November 5, 2009 6:11 AM
This sounds like a headline from The Onion.
Posted by: Rochelle
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November 5, 2009 6:12 AM
(BTW, nice article Sarah... as per usual)
Posted by: Johnny Worthington
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November 5, 2009 6:14 AM
Social media is the highlight of anything social. The more social a person is, the more they desire more social outlets. This study and results could not have made anymore sense while debunking a stereotype.
My personal opinion is that one's interactions in social media are reflections of one's attitude in 'real-life' social encounters.
Thanks Johnny!
Posted by: Sarah Perez
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November 5, 2009 9:46 AM
"Despite all this good news about how technology leads to having larger, more diverse networks, the researchers also found that our networks' size has actually shrunk over the years. Since 1985, there has been a decrease of about 1/3 in their size. "
How is technology ruled out as a factor? Maybe it just means that too many people are using technology to socialize, which impedes social interaction overall but if you're not doing it, you're worse off because everyone else is. That is, if people only socialized in real life, we'd all be interacting more with much richer communication. But since a large portion use technology, you are left in the cold if you don't.
This is like saying that people who drink alcohol have more friends on average. Therefore, getting drunk leads to more friends (when really it's just because a lot of people go to the bars).
Regarding one's social attitude in life .Sending more troops into war / Children carry weapons Son's and daughter's go to war . Over 52.000 views on You Tube
Song For My Son seems to be delivering a message that the people want to hear ..
Check it out tell me what you think .
Love and Music
Mickey
http://www.digitaljournal.com/blog/4438
Well written, but not exactly a surprise. With the explosion of custom social networking websites it is hard for the stereotype of the computer geek to remain valid. People (and businesses) are flocking to social media and the idea of one global converstation.
It's easy to say that people are becoming social hermits simply because they spend more time typing than conversing face-to-face. However, consider this - most people using social network sites like Facebook and MySpace have made contact with long lost friends, constituents, and family and now provide these groups with status updates and share posts (also known as communication). So, while it is true more time is spent communicating via keyboard and screen, the amount of communication remains the same or may have even expanded. http://www.metroplexinteractive.com
Social media websites are just way too helpful nowadays. Through social media, you can get in touch with your friends, meet new people, learn new things, see your target markets and even give you profits.