After a long research on the facebook users finally
psychologists find why people use the facebook. Facebook is an accepted means
of communication. It is a never-ending virtual social gathering filled with
adopted puppies, cute LOL kitties, baby announcements, viral articles and
videos, events, groups, organizations and fan pages. But why do people really
use it?
A new study entitled "Why do people use
Facebook?" from Boston University's Ashwini Nadkarni and Stefan G. Hofmann
proposes that the social network meets two primary human needs: (1) the need to
belong and (2) the need for self-presentation. The study also acknowledges
demographic and cultural factors as they relate to the belonging need, and the
variation of personality types on Facebook usage.
The study defines social networking sites (SNSs) as
"Internet-based services that give individuals three major capabilities:
The ability to construct a public or semi-private profile, identify a list of
other users with whom a connection is shared, and view and track connections
made by individuals and others.
Who
Is Using Facebook? A Breakdown by Demographics
Before 2009, MySpace led the social network race. By
April 2009, it was dead. A 2008 study by E. Hargittai found that Hispanic
students made up 25% of the MySpace population as compared to only 14% of
Facebook users. The demographics of Facebook are quite different. Women are
more likely to use Facebook than men, and Hispanic students were less likely to
use it than Caucasians.
A study from 2009 by Grasmuck, Martin & Zhao found
that African Americans, Latinos and Indian students displayed "greater
intensity of cultural selves (marked by specific consumer and popular culture
preferences) than the White students and Vietnamese ancestry students."
This is in line with findings from the Facebook Data
team, which shows the steady increase of black and Hispanic users in early
2009, and a decline of the number of Asian users. This data looked at surnames
on Facebook with data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau to see percentages of
racial minorities on Facebook.
Previous studies have looked at the similarities between
offline personality portrayal and online personality, proving strong
connections between real personality and Facebook-related behavior. Extroverts
report the most friends and highest engagement levels. People categorized as
conscientious types - disciplined, organized and achievement-oriented - report
the least Facebook use.
Facebook engagement results in a trail of virtual
residue, including photos, videos, links, status updates and other traces of a
virtual presence. A 2009 study by Ross et al. found thatpersonality types that
ranked high on neuroticism claimed the Facebook Wall as their favorite
component. People who were low on neuroticism, however, said photos were their
favorite. A 2009 study by E.S. Orr, et. al. found that while shy individuals
had fewer friends on Facebook relative to nonshy people, the shy individuals
spent more time on Facebook and liked the social network more overall.
A 2010 study entitled "Narcissism and social
networking web sites" found a positive association between narcissism and
Facebook use, especially in relation to profiles and photos, both features that
allow users to promote themselves. The study found that people with a high
level of narcissism and people with low levels of self-esteem spent more than
an hour per day on Facebook.
Frequent FB users "exhibit a high level of
extraversion, low self-esteem, high levels of neuroticism and narcissism, and
low levels of self-esteem and self-worth are associated with high FB use."
The study goes on to note that frequent Facebook use may be associated with
lower academic performance, but it may lead to higher self-esteem and a sense
of belonging.
We
All Want To Be A Part...Of Something: Facebook and the Dual-Factor Model
Everyone just wants to belong, right? In the online
aspect of our lives, Facebook offers us that virtual sense of belonging. The
study claims that Facebook meets two basic social needs: (1) the need to belong
and (2) the need for self-presentation. Self-esteem and self-worth are
associated closely with the first basic social need, to belong. Facebook use
is, of course, also influenced by sociodemographic and cultural factors.
Females and ethnic minorities tended to use Facebook more than males and
Caucasians.
This last part of the study looked at Facebook use in
individualistic versus, which emphasize individual achievements and success,
versus collectivistic cultures, which focus on harmony within the group. In
these cultures, individual gain is less important than the social group. The
study hypothesizes that "members from individualistic cultures are more
likely to share private information with their Facebook friends and more likely
to raise potentially controversial topics as compared to Facebook users from
collectivistic cultures."
People in collectivist cultures are more likely to stay
in troubled marriages and jobs than people in individualistic cultures
according to a 2000 study by Diener. As such, Facebook can serve as a support
system for those people in collectivist cultures, who have frequent
interactions and a close circle of Facebook friends.
A study called "Mirror, Mirror on my Facebook wall:
Effects of exposure to Facebook on self-esteem," looked at the results of
being exposed to information presented on one's Facebook profile, suggesting
that it can help enhance self-esteem. This proved especially true when a person
edited information about the self.
Can Facebook enhance self-esteem through offline
friendships? A 2010 study by Lou in Dissertation Abstracts International:
Section B: The Sciences and Engineering, 70, found that Facebook use intensity
reduced perceived levels of loneliness, but FB's improvement of a user's social
life did not improve the user's self-esteem.
Other studies have found correlations between Facebook
use and improvement of self-esteem.Yu and colleagues collected surveys from
college students majoring in business at an undergraduate school in China.
Results showed that FB use benefited socialization and social learning
outcomes, including higher levels of self-esteem. The findings in this study
suggest that "the association between self-esteem and Facebook use is
complex and possibly moderated by cultural and social factors." In
collectivistic culture such as China, Facebook use may enhance self esteem.
Still, more research must be conducted.
What about Facebook use and social connection?
Disconnection often times motivates Facebook use, and being connected rewards
it according to a 2011 study by Sheldon, Abad & Hirsch, the authors
discovered that "frequent Facebook use correlated with feelings of general
connection in life and also with feelings of general disconnection in
life." In yet another study, researchers found that "the correlation
of disconnection with Facebook use was mediated by the tendency to cope with
disconnection via Facebook." In other words, Facebook became both the
outlet for disconnection and the perpetuation of it.
Another 2011 study by Kim & Lee that visualizing
social connects on Facebook actually boosted users' self-esteem.
The
Bottom Line: Facebook Fulfills Our Need for Self-Presentation
Studies have found that on Facebook, the self you portray
is not idealized - it is the real you. But a 2008 study by Zhao, Grasmuck &
Martin found that the Facebook selves appeared to be socially desirable
identities that individuals aspired to have offline but do not have - yet.
Furthermore, identities created on Facebook differed greatly from those
constructed in anonymous online environments.
What about Facebook's impact on impression formation? If
you're going on a date with someone you meet on OKCupid, for example, chances
are you've friended them on Facebook to get a better idea of them. Recruiters
are using Facebook to screen potential job applicants. An overabundance of
friend connections actually produced doubts about FB users' actual popularity,
according to a 2008 study by Tong.
The study concludes this section with the idea that
Facebook profiles reflect the users' public persona, which appears to be
"shaped by the need for self-presentation." These types of needs
guide the users' behaviors, profile photo and number of friends, all of which
make up one's impression of the user.
So,
Why Are We Really Using Facebook?
Facebook currently has 800 million users worldwide.
According to the study, people use Facebook to fulfill two basic social needs:
the need to belong and the need for self-presentation.Facebook use is also
influenced by outside factors, such as cultural background, sociodemographic
variables and personality traits.
These findings account for the oft-cited "shutting
off Facebook for a period of time" social experiments that we tend to see
floating about the Internet. In this "Facebook detox," the user felt
upset about the Facebook privacy settings, and a general sense of information
overload. So, he "detoxed" for a period of 30 days.
A recent New York Times article entitled "The
Facebook Resisters" sparked a similar controversy stemming from concerns
about privacy, alienation and a feeling of information overload. Friends of
mine have often times referred to Facebook as a "black hole."
Mashable writer Sam Laird conducted a similar experiment.
He deactivated his account in July 2011; five months later he wrote about it in
"My Life Without Facebook: A Social Experiment." While he did find
that he no longer had the "should I post this to Facebook?" question
lingering in the back of his mind all the time, and he spent less time in front
of the computer overall, there was one thing he missed.
He missed those "funny Facebook photos from parties
or nights out come up when hanging out with friends." Laird wrote that he
found himself "playing catch-up when someone brings up an article someone
else shared on Facebook."
He misses what most every Facebook user would miss if
they shut down their account: that sense of belonging and of self-presentation.
These are the reasons people use Facebook, despite its long list of privacy
issues.
+ comments + 3 comments
Hey Pavan, This is a really nice research you've posted here. Amazing facts about facebook usage, your skills of writing is very impressive. I was able to feel these statistics throughout my reading. Last part of content having conversational format is great. These are real facts of live that we are going though everyday without knowing what we are missing. Thanks for sharing a useful post. Learning psychology is amazing, feels really good when you know what the person is really thinking, and what is he talking. The difference between thoughts and your statement is sometimes annoying when you know the exact thought.
Tank you Jack
@Alex GreenTank you Alex
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