Identity construction on Facebook: Digital empowerment in anchored relationships

Early research on online self-presentation mostly focused on identity constructions in anonymous online environments. Such studies found that individuals tended to engage in role-play games and anti-normative behaviors in the online world. More recent studies have examined identity performance in less anonymous online settings such as Internet dating sites and reported different findings. The present study investigates identity construction on Facebook, a newly emerged nonymous online environment. Based on content analysis of 63 Facebook accounts, we find that the identities produced in this nonymous environment differ from those constructed in the anonymous online environments previously reported. Facebook users predominantly claim their identities implicitly rather than explicitly; they “show rather than tell” and stress group and consumer identities over personally narrated ones. The characteristics of such identities are described and the implications of this finding are discussed.     

Your post is embarrassing me: Face threats,identity, and the audience on Facebook

While Facebook is a popular venue for sharing information about ourselves, it also allows others to share information about us, which can lead to embarrassment. This study investigates the effects of shared face-threatening information on emotional and nonverbal indicators of embarrassment using an experiment (N = 120) in which pairs of friends posted about each other on Facebook. Results show that face-threatening information shared by others produces a powerful emotional and nonverbal embarrassment response. However, it is not the content of the face-threatening post that produces this effect. Rather, the level of embarrassment depends primarily on whether that information violates the individual's identity and if they perceive that unknown members of their audience can see it. In response, individuals were most likely to joke about the post, although those who were most embarrassed were more likely to delete it. These results inform our understanding of how the process of embarrassment works online. The emotional embarrassment response is similar to offline, but is affected by the features of these sites, such as a large, invisible audience, and the need for ideal self-presentation. This finding has important implications for treating online social networks and their effects to be as “real” as those offline.     

Beyond Facebook: The generalization of social networking site measures

PurposePrevious research on social networking sites (SNSs) suggests several factors that contribute to SNS use. However, the factors were specific to a particular website. We wished to know if similar factors could predict the use of a new SNS in terms of usefulness and satisfaction with the goal of creating factors that would generalize across SNSs.ResultsParticipants reported their SNS Diet and performed five tasks using a new SNS. Then, participants reported which of the five tasks was most frustrating. Participants also reported if the usefulness of the SNS would affect their future use of the site. Participants with a high SNS Diet used SNSs once a day or more. The SNS Diet was predictive of a participant’s satisfaction rating and a participant’s perception of usefulness.ConclusionThe differences suggest that different groups of social networking users will respond differently based on their SNS Diet. This study finds support for both the Rational Actor Perspective and the Web Acceptance Model. We outline a new continuous measure of SNS use which generalizes across different social networks.     

Image and video disclosure of substance use on social media websites

The present study examines young adults’ use of social media websites, such as MySpace, Facebook, and YouTube, to post public images and videos of themselves depicting alcohol consumption, inebriated behavior, or recreational marijuana use. A content analysis revealed that the majority of image and video representations of alcohol consumption depicted females in social gatherings while images and videos depicting marijuana use depicted solitary males. Videos typically were viewed frequently and gained positive ratings. Among a sample of college students, one-third of participants reported having posted a picture depicting substance use on a social networking site, with 97% aware that others engage in this phenomenon. Students’ perceptions of alcohol-related postings were generally positive or seen as a matter of individual choice while marijuana-related postings were generally viewed more negatively.     

Correlates of Facebook usage patterns: The relationship between passive Facebook use,social anxiety symptoms,and brooding

Facebook (FB)¹ is a popular platform for interacting with others to establish or maintain relationships. Compared to other interpersonal exchanges, FB does not require in-person interactions. Therefore, FB may represent an important social sphere for individuals with social anxiety disorder (SAD).² Examining the relationship between social anxiety symptoms and FB activity could inform future research on the benefits or consequences of FB use in SAD individuals. This study examined the relationship between social anxiety symptoms and different FB usage patterns. We also considered the role of brooding—a known risk factor for SAD. 75 nonclinical FB users completed questionnaires about psychological symptoms, FB usage, and brooding. Greater social anxiety symptoms were associated with spending more time on FB and passively using FB (i.e., viewing other’s profiles without interacting). Brooding mediated the relationship between passive FB use and social anxiety symptoms. An alternative model demonstrated that social anxiety symptoms mediated the association between passive FB use and brooding. This study was limited by its cross-sectional, self-report design. Future research should assess FB use with objective, real-time data and use experimental designs. Results have implications for the cognitive–behavioral model of SAD.     

Sex differences in jealousy over Facebook activity

Forty heterosexual undergraduate students (24 females, 16 males) who were currently in a romantic relationship filled out a modified version of The Facebook Jealousy questionnaire (Muise, Christofides, & Desmarais, 2009). The questionnaire was filled out twice, once with the participant’s own personal responses, and a second time with what each participant imagined that his/her romantic partner’s responses would be like. The data indicated that females were more prone to Facebook-evoked feelings of jealousy and to jealousy-motivated behavior than males. Males accurately predicted these sex differences in response to the jealousy scale, but females seemed unaware that their male partners would be less jealous than themselves.     

Facebook use depending on age: The influence of social comparisons

Facebook use is analyzed depending on age and occurrence of social comparisons. The hypotheses state that age is negatively associated with Facebook use and that this association is mediated by social comparison orientation. Data collection was realized via the Internet. The online-questionnaire included information on Facebook use on the basis of a behavioral report (cf., McAndrew & Jeong, 2012), an inventory for measuring social comparison orientation by Gibbons and Buunk (1999), and demographic questions. Results are based on 335 participants. They confirm both the negative association between age and frequency of Facebook activities and the mediation of this association by comparison orientation. These results are interpreted on the basis of evolutionary theory. This study offers new insights on the mediating role of social comparisons in the relationship between age and Facebook use. In the discussion suggestions for further routes of research on the link between age, comparison orientation, and Facebook use are outlined.     

Exploring college students' generational differences in Facebook usage

In recent years the usage of social networks among students has become the subject of numerous studies. In this study we were interested in differences in patterns of online behaviour and the use of Facebook (FB) among the second and third generation of students. The results showed that 66% of the second year students had a FB account, while in the third generation all of the respondents had a FB account. One third of the second year students avoid any involvement in FB. Lack of interest was one of the main reasons the respondents indicated for not being engaged in FB, as well as their unwillingness to put personal information online. Currently, most of them are satisfied using FB, and do not plan to turn off their profile. The newer generations of students use FB mainly for overcoming boredom. Based on the results of the study, it can be concluded that the time spent online increases, as well as the number of FB users, and also the number of virtual friends increases in order to exchange information.     

Factors mediating disclosure in social network sites

In this paper, we explore how privacy settings and privacy policy consumption (reading the privacy policy) affect the relationship between privacy attitudes and disclosure behaviors. We present results from a survey completed by 122 users of Facebook regarding their information disclosure practices and their attitudes about privacy. Based on our data, we develop and evaluate a model for understanding factors that affect how privacy attitudes influence disclosure and discuss implications for social network sites. Our analysis shows that the relationship between privacy attitudes and certain types of disclosures (those furthering contact) are controlled by privacy policy consumption and privacy behaviors. This provides evidence that social network sites could help mitigate concerns about disclosure by providing transparent privacy policies and privacy controls.     

When it comes to Facebook there may be more to bad memory than just multitasking

Previous research has shown that high levels of Facebook use are associated with lower grades in college students. Divided attention in the form of trying to use Facebook during class or while studying has been suggested as a possible explanation for this finding. In the current study, 44 participants were divided into high and low Facebook users and completed a memory test for 72 words. Participants were not allowed to use Facebook, or any other electronic device, during the study thereby eliminating divided attention between Facebook and the task at hand as a possible explanation for the results. High Facebook users (defined as spending more than one hour a day on Facebook) scored significantly lower on the free recall test than low Facebook users. Possible explanations for this finding are discussed.     

Self-disclosure and student satisfaction with Facebook

The purpose of the current study was to extend existing research examining the specific motives for creating and maintaining Facebook, and to connect these motives to users’ levels of self-disclosure and satisfaction with Facebook. Undergraduate students identified their reasons for using Facebook, privacy and self-disclosure settings, and satisfaction with Facebook’s ability to meet these motivational needs. Results indicated that the most common motives for using Facebook were relationship maintenance, passing time, and entertainment, although gender differences in motives for creating a Facebook page were observed. Males and females also differed in the overall level of self-disclosure as well as the type of information presented on their Facebook pages. Levels of self-disclosure, but not privacy levels, were associated with greater levels of satisfaction with Facebook to meet certain motivational goals.     

Facebook: Social uses and anxiety

Research has shown inconsistent relationships between social anxiety and time spent on Facebook, possibly because Facebook’s many activities vary in degree of social interactivity. We examined the relationships between social anxiety, anxiety on Facebook, and social Facebook use. A multiple regression predicting social Facebook use revealed an interaction. Participants with high anxiety on Facebook and high social anxiety reported more frequent social Facebook use than those with high anxiety on Facebook and low social anxiety. A second multiple regression predicting social anxiety showed a suppression effect, indicating that social Facebook use predicts social anxiety only once anxiety on Facebook has been accounted for. These findings suggest that anxiety on Facebook clarifies the relationship between social anxiety and social Facebook use.     

The uses and gratifications of using Facebook music listening applications

Despite rapid adoption of social media as a means of music listening, little is known about users’ motivations. This study applies the uses and gratifications approach to users’ motivations for using music listening applications on Facebook. Participants completed an online survey, and 153 out of 576 respondents indicated that they used a Facebook music listening application. A principal axis factor analysis identified three different motivations for this usage, namely entertainment, communication, and habitual diversion gratifications. The entertainment and communication gratifications replicate those found in prior uses and gratifications research concerning other social networking features, illustrating the strong similarity between uses of music and social media. However, the habitual diversion gratification may serve to distinguish listening applications from other features. Identifying and explaining these factors is relevant to social media users, musicians and application designers, as they explain what motivates a means of music listening that is gaining prominence.     

The Janus face of Facebook: Positive and negative sides of social networking site use

There is an increasing awareness that social networking site (SNS) use includes a socio-psychologically positive and a negative side. However, research remains largely silent on which side dominates in driving SNS use. To address this gap and to better understand the nature of SNSs we examine the positive and negative drivers of SNS use in parallel. We draw on the uses and gratifications theory and place social enhancement and interpersonal connectivity as the socio-psychologically positive gratifications and exhibitionism and voyeurism as the adverse gratifications predicting SNS use. We further link these gratifications to two key psychological needs, namely self-presentation and the need to belong. We conceptualize our dependent variable, SNS use, as a multi-dimensional second-order construct that consists of content production, content consumption, amount of usage, and comprehensiveness of one's profile information. We use longitudinal data from Facebook users to test our research model. The results show that exhibitionism, voyeurism and interpersonal connectivity predict SNS use. Furthermore, the number of friends in the SNS decreases the effect of exhibitionism and increases the effect of social enhancement. Altogether, the role of exhibitionism and voyeurism in predicting SNS use underscores the need for increased awareness of the socio-psychologically dark side of SNSs.     

Effects of self-disclosure on relational intimacy in Facebook

The present study examined the association between self-disclosure and intimacy in the context of Facebook. As the antecedents of self-disclosure, the study included the need for affiliation and the motivations for relationship maintenance and initiation. Using data from an online survey (N = 249), structural equation modeling analyses revealed that self-disclosure amount and positivity were positively associated with intimacy, while self-disclosure honesty and intent were not associated with intimacy. The study also found no direct association between the need for affiliation and self-disclosure. Rather, the need for affiliation was associated with the motivations for relationship maintenance and initiation, which in turn affected self-disclosure and intimacy. The theoretical implications of the study were discussed.     

Understanding the privacy behavior of adolescents on Facebook: The role of peers,popularity and trust

We study whether peer influence processes, popularity and trust predict privacy settings on Facebook. We use large-scale survey data from 3434 Dutch adolescents combined with observed privacy behavior on Facebook. The findings show that peer influence processes play a role and that adolescents imitate the privacy settings of their peers in the classroom. Such imitation processes are particularly pronounced for highly connected classrooms. The results show that more popular adolescents in the classroom are more likely to publicly display their Facebook profiles. Furthermore, we find that low-trust groups (ethnic minorities, lower educated and younger adolescents, and girls) more frequently opt for private Facebook profiles.     

Examining priming and gender as a means to reduce risk in a social networking context: Can stories change disclosure and privacy setting use when personal profiles are constructed?

The objective of this study was to examine whether content of Facebook profiles differed as a function of priming story and gender. Disclosure of personal information and the use of privacy settings when constructing Facebook profiles were assessed when participants were or were not provided with priming stories that would alert them to potential risks from information sharing on the Internet. Participants read one of three priming stories (anecdotal, legal or neutral), prior to constructing a profile for either a male or female. The anecdotal story described a stalking incident, while the legal story summarized a ‘typical’ online privacy statement. Previously established scoring tools were used to assess disclosure and privacy settings use (see Nosko, Wood, & Molema, 2010). Overall, gender was an important predictor for disclosure. Females disclosed less sensitive information than males after reading the anecdotal privacy story. Less disclosure also was found when participants constructed a profile for someone of the same gender. Disclosure of particular pieces of information also differed by gender of the discloser. Very few participants employed privacy settings. The impact for these outcomes is discussed in terms of their ability to potentially inhibit over-disclosure in personal profiles and to identify users who are at particular risk.     

Emotional disclosure on social networking sites: The role of network structure and psychological needs

We conducted three studies to understand how online emotional disclosure is influenced by social network structure on Facebook. Results showed that emotional disclosure was associated with both the density and size of users’ personal networks. Facebook users with denser networks disclosed more positive and negative emotions, and the relation between network density and emotional disclosure was mediated by stronger need for emotional expression. Facebook users with larger networks on Facebook disclosed more positive emotions, and the relation between network size and emotional disclosure was mediated by a stronger need for impression management. Our study extends past research by revealing the psychological mechanisms through which personal social network structure influences emotional disclosure. It suggests that social network size and density are associated with different psychological needs, which in turn lead to different patterns of emotional disclosure.     

Correlation between Facebook use for educational purposes and academic performance of students

In this paper a research on the application of Facebook in education is presented. A total of 139 students of the Faculty of Education in Sombor (Serbia) participated in the research. The results establish a positive correlation between the academic performance of students and the frequency of use of Facebook for educational purposes. The factor of perceived usefulness greatly affected the decision of students to use Facebook as a learning aid. No significant difference in the frequency of use of Facebook for general purposes has been reported between the groups of students divided by the academic performance.     

A study of Facebook Groups members’ knowledge sharing

There have been many studies focusing on individuals’ knowledge sharing behavior in the organizational setting. With the rapid prevalence of social networking sites, many people began to express their thoughts or share their knowledge via Facebook website. Facebook is an open environment which does not provide any immediate monetary benefits to its users. Its Groups members’ knowledge sharing behavior could be different from the ones in organizations. We proposed a research model to examine factors which promote the Facebook Groups users’ willingness to share knowledge. The factors in the study include extrinsic motivation, social and psychological forces, and social networking sharing culture. We used PLS to test our proposed hypotheses based on 271 responses collected through an online survey. Our results indicated that reputation would affect knowledge sharing attitude of Groups members and sense of self-worth would directly and indirectly (through subjective norm) affect the attitude. In addition, social networking sharing culture (fairness, identification, and openness) is the most significant factor, not only directly affecting knowledge sharing intention, but also indirectly influencing the sharing intention through subjective norm and knowledge sharing attitude.