36 Social Networking Sites

Mrs. Bindu S. Tambe

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Module Structure

 

35.0     Learning Outcomes

 

35.1     Introduction

 

35.2     History / background of SNS

 

35.3  What is SNS?

 

35.4  Applications of SNS

 

35.5  Meritsand Demerits of SNS

 

35.6  Let us sum up

 

35.0 Learning outcomes

  • To acquire knowledge of Social Networking Sites (SNS).
  • To develop an understanding of the different components / features of SNS.
  • To develop an understanding of the meritsand demerits of SNS.

 

35.1  Introduction

 

Social Networking Sites are internet based communication and deals with interactions between people using online mode. These types of interactions are made possible if they have similar interest and information for sharing. SNS permits free flow of communication, leading to new and varied information. Such interactions enable better input of ideas, discussions and relevant contributions to the queries asked in the forum. It permeates beyond structural boundaries and reaches out to build rich data base thus improving networking among the clients. It targets a wide audience from different fields like education, entertainment, business, governmental organization, Non-Governmental Organizations, scientific communities and social groups.

 

 

35.2 Background / History of SNS

 

Communication is an essential component of social networking. Human discoveries have enabled the enhancement of communication systems from cave drawings and paintings to oral, print and internet communication. This also brought about change in the style of communication and interactions, social networking led to many forms of communication.

 

As times changed, the way men interacted also changed. With the advent of the computers and the internet, the communication was mainly through e mail.

 

Later newer forms developed like blogs, chats, (instant messenger) and discussion forums.The history of social networking sites can be summarized as follows:

 

Early online services made an effort to support social networks, which included bulletin board services. Early social networking on the World Wide Web began in the form of generalized online communities. New social networking methods were developed by the end of the 1990s and many sites began to develop more advanced features for users to find and manage friends. Facebooklaunched in 2004, became the largest social networking site in the world in early 2009.

 

The idea was to bring people closer together to interact with each other in chat rooms, and at the same time encourage them to share personal information and ideas. These sites provided people with easy to use tools and free or cheap web space to create personal webpages. Some communities took a different approach by simply having people link to each other via email addresses. In the late 1990s, user profiles became a central feature of social networking sites, allowing users to compile lists of “friends” and search for other users with similar interests.

 

35.3     What is SNS?

 

A social networking service is basically a place where people who have similar interests in terms of their profession as well as personal life can build an active social life. It helps people to connect with one another on a web-based platform. Here, people like you and me can make our own profile and can decide with whom we want to share our information. At the same time, we will also have access to the others information.

 

Emails and instant messaging are the most common methods of keeping tabs on one another. But it is not limited to these. We can also share pictures, videos and audios with one another. Social networking sites allow users to share ideas, pictures, posts, activities, events, interests with people in their network.

 

Put simply, social networking is a way for one person to meet up with other people on the Internet. People use social networking sites for meeting new friends, finding old friends, or locating people who have the same problems or interests they have.

 

Characteristics of social networking sites:

 

Social networking sites help us make a public profile, make a list of people we want to share or connect with and at the same view their list. The list we talk about is nothing but our friends list.

 

Using answers to questions about our age, location, interest will help create a profile. We can also upload pictures, audio/video content and are allowed to change our profile or modify it from time to time. Many sites allow users to post blog entries, search for others with similar interests and compile and share lists of contacts. These user profiles mostly have a section dedicated to comments from friends and other users. To protect user privacy, social networks have controls that allow users to choose who can view their profile, contact them, add them to their list of contacts and so on.

 

These social networks also enable us to be part of a group with similar interests or problems.

 

In most communities, with the help of mobile phones, users can now create their own profiles, make friends, create and participate in chat rooms, hold private conversations, share photos and videos, and share blogs. Wireless services allow people to build their own mobile community.

 

Social networking sites allow for broadcast similar to live radio and television broadcast wherein users can contribute content, and upload it at the same time.Twitterwas the first social networking site to do this, wherein users can broadcast to the world what they are doing, or what is on their minds with a 140-character limit. Facebook followed suit with their “Live Feed” where users’ activities are streamed as soon as it happens. While Twitter focuses on words, Clixtr, another real-time service, focuses on group photo sharing wherein users can update their photo streams with photos while at an event. Facebook, however, remains the largest photo sharing site. In April, 2012, the image-based social media network Pinterest had become the third largest social network in the United States.

 

As we know social networking sites not only help individuals to build interactions or networking, but also groups or communities. The latest trend in this is where companies are merging business needs and experiences by building interactive communities online. Many provide specialized networking tools and applications that can be accessed via their websites.

 

 

35.4 Uses of Social Networking Sites

  • Uses in Education

 

One of the biggest uses of SNS in education is how it has made it possible for the shy and introverted child in the classroom to be more vocal with his ideas and opinions on the internet. He/she doesn’t feel threatened or bullied like what he /she may be experiencing in the classroom. It has opened up a huge world for these children who otherwise would feel left out in the classroom situation. SNS also has helped today’s generation to develop technical and social skills which can be transferred to their daily life areas. As teachers, when we are able to create an interest among our students by using the medium of social networking to provide learning experiences to them, teaching and learning become more meaningful, fun and relevant. Media, be it print or net-based, is part of our lives, interwoven with the other things in our life. Even to simply send an email or update a status, a participant needs to develop certain technical skills. This will help in navigating the social networking sites better. The development of new media skills is extremely helpful to the youth in navigating the digital world with confidence.

 

Since social networking allows sharing, mentoring and developing social interaction, it helps develop a sense of participatory culture where each one is willing to be a contributor in the various aspects of the interaction. These networks allow students to converse and collaborate with others in real time.

 

Curriculum uses of social networking services can also include sharing curriculum-related resources. Educators tap into user-generated content to find and discuss curriculum-related content for students. Responding to the popularity of social networking services among many students, teachers are increasingly using social networks to supplement teaching and learning in traditional classroom environments as they can provide new opportunities for enriching existing curriculum through creative, authentic and flexible, non-linear learning experiences.

 

Social networks focused on supporting relationships between teachers and their students are now used for learning, educator professional development, and content sharing. There are lots of SNS for teachers that are being built to foster relationships that include educational blogs, e-portfolios, formal and informal communities, as well as communication such as chats, discussion threads, and synchronous forums.

  • Uses in the Government:

 

Social networking in recent times is being used by various government agencies. The networking tools serve as a quick and easy way for the government to get the opinion of the public and to keep the public updated on the government activities. News about contagious diseases, their prevention and treatment are easily sent across to the public. Lot of socially relevant messages regarding environment, effects of global warming are made available through these SNS. There are many children’s sites which are used very effectively to demonstrate the importance of vaccination.

 

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration provides a virtual experience to people where they can create a virtual island and can explore underground caves or explore the effects of global warming. In recent times, the various political uprisings in different parts of the world had a lot of positive support from the social networking sites. Can you imagine the impact these networks would have had on the politics of the world if they had existed in the 1800s and 1900s?

  • Business uses:

 

Use of social networking services has a major impact in the way business is conducted. Since social networks only need internet which is available at low cost, it is useful to the entrepreneurs and small –time business people to expand their contact and also conduct business. They can use these networks to advertise and promote their products and services. These sites also help put up banners and text advertisements for the business communities. Social networking works on a global scale so you can imagine the impact of these advertisements on a global scale.

 

The power of social networks is beginning to permeate into culture of businesses where they are finding uses for collaboration, file sharing and knowledge transfer.

  • Uses in Medical and health sector:

 

Legitimate medical practitioners, i.e. doctors have started using social networking sites to collaborate and communicate with their own fraternity regarding the various developments in the field and also the need to address problems they face in their day to day life as a trained doctor. They are able to share their knowledge about doctors as well as institutions providing healthcare facilities.

 

With the lifestyle that people are leading now, there are numerous kinds of physical and mental ailments affecting their lives and there are many networks created to deal with such problems. Here the members can interact with one another about the symptoms and also remedies. People with terminal diseases can also connect with others in their situation offer hope and encouragement to one another. For alcoholics and addicts, these social networks give people in recovery the ability to communicate with one another and strengthen their recovery through the encouragement of others who can relate to their situation. There are many other websites which offer support groups for a wide variety of topics.

 

Some social networks aim to encourage healthy lifestyles in their users. People with weight loss issues can connect on certain networks like SparkPeople.

  • Political advantages:

 

The world is changing every day and in every possible way. This change can also be seen in the politics of the world. There are so many political changes taking place and social networking sites have a huge role in the way they take place and influence people to be a part of the change. Revolutions taking place anywhere in the world keep people connected through these social networks. These sites provide a forum, a medium for the revolutionaries to voice their opinion and needs and also get the support of the people. In the case of the Egyptian revolution people around the world knew about the struggle going on in Tahrir Square as it was happening. Human rights activists can condemn the brutality against the human life happening anywhere in the world. Also, any event in the world like the natural calamities in any part of the world connects people through the social networking sites. They help reach out to people with resources and help deliver these to the ones who need it.

  • Scientific Community and SNS

 

Science and the scientific community are progressing in leaps and bounds on an everyday basis. These changes can be shared with the communities using the social networking sites. Specific knowledge which is useful in the scientific community is also exchanged through these social networking sites. Sharing always leads to exponential leap in information and knowledge. People from the scientific community can share papers, review each other’s work, offer insights, help publicize events and have fruitful and healthy discussions.

 

Without costing much money and time, social networking sites help in maintaining social interactions. It helps others see us as the person we are and especially in today’s world where extremely busy schedules have stopped us from having any kind of social interactions.

 

35.5 Merits and demerits of Social networking Sites

 

Social networks not only allow people to meet and communicate with strangers, but they also let users organize and make visible their social networks. In many ways, social media has led to positive changes in the way people communicate and share information

  • Children earlier were not exposed to the events and happenings outside of their immediate world. But SNS and the use of internet has helped in creating a lot of awareness about the events and happenings outside of their limited world. They have learnt to see that the problems they face exist everywhere and also there are problems in the world apart from their own. It helps them to understand the world and its problems in a better way. SNS help children to think and resolve issues that can be beneficial to them and others. It helps develop a sense of collaboration among them where they can see themselves in others and are able to be a part of the solution rather than the problem.
  • Boundaries of the world are shrinking and we talk of global citizens. SNS helps in improving the world awareness. Earlier children were not keen on knowing about the political, social, economic, health problems of people around the world. But SNS has opened up this world to them and they have become aware citizens of the world and they are keen to know about the happenings in the rest of the world. They can share their views on world economy, politics and their voices are heard making them more aware of their rights and duties and responsibilities.
  • SNS help create a more engaging learning experience.When learning experiences are infused into their life through the use of websites, students realize that learning can and should be a part of everyday life. It does not have to be separate and unattached. Shy and introvert students who otherwise do not speak in class are able to express themselves through these networks.
  • SNS helps in sharing current practices through a knowledge network. People in the scientific and medical community are able to share their expertise and interact with one another for the general benefit of all those involved.
  • SNS has also helped bring accountability of people out in the open. People caught doing bad deeds are projected on these networks and at the same time people have become more expressive of their expectation from their government.
  • Social networking offers many benefits. It is now easier than ever to keep in contact with old friends and colleagues. The professional networking site LinkedIn even allows users to request introductions to business people who are known to their contacts. The potential of this enhanced connectivity is huge; whereas once you would be left sifting through business cards after a networking event, trying to remember details about each person, you can now easily look up a connection’s credentials and business interests on their social media profile.

 

Limitations of Social Networking Sites:

  • SNS also has a dark side, as well. Social networking can sometimes result in negative outcomes, some with long-term consequences. While many people use it for wholesome, ethical, and healthy reasons, there are also many who utilize it to abuse and exploit others, particularly children and teens.
  • SNS opens up the possibility for hackers to commit fraud and launch spam and virus attacks. Everyone is at risk but children are especially so. SNS increases the risk of people falling prey to online scams that seem genuine, resulting in data or identity theft. It may encourage exploitation and abuse which may lead to the very negative effects on the life of the people. The use of fake identities is one advantage these people have in order to be more confident in exploiting and abusing children.
  • A lot of time is wasted on the SNS in work environment. People get busy in their office time with these networking sites. It results in loss of productivity when employees are busy updating their profiles or uploading their pictures, chatting with their acquaintances. The frustrations and problems of being on these sites also results in employees losing important and efficient work hours.
  • People who use social networking sites for their daily communication are hooked to a point that they neglect health responsibilities, especially their diet. The addictive nature of social media leads to eating disorders, obesity, heart problems, sleep disorders, and other persistent health issues. Additionally, constant exposure to the internet because of social networking addiction prevents a child or teen from engaging in physical activities and socialization. They become so dependent on it that they start to think making contact with other people outside these social networks is not necessary. As such, they become socially and physically stagnant.
  • Attention-deficit hyperactivity Disorder is one of most noticeable condition resulting from the SNS addiction. The practice of logging on daily to see hundreds of new photos, comments, and user statuses have begun to take away the ability to keep focus on something for more than an hour or two, making ADHD a very real and possible effect of SNS
  • When interacting with someone through text messages, instant messaging, or email, a large portion of how humans interact is gone. This leads to severing social ties and leads to further depression and loneliness.
  • Narcissism, the excessive love or admiration of oneself, has become one of the largest problems, especially in SNS users. This way of self-entitled thinking is very dangerous for any person. This can negatively affect how they see themselves, as well as how they treat and perceive others.

 

These are some of the issues arising out of excessive use of SNS.

 

 

35.7 Let us sum up:

 

Social Networks are Web-based services that allow people to construct a public profile. Articulate a listof other users with whom they share a connection with friends, family, etc. Social networks not only allow people to meet and communicate with strangers, but they also let users organize and visible their social networks. There are millions of people on the internet who are looking to meet other people and to gather and share information and experiences on a variety of topics. Hundreds of social networking sites have been created, and have attracted millions of users. In a very short span social networking has become a phenomenon. Most of the key features of these sites are very similar, yet the cultures that form around the social networking sites vary in many different ways. Some of the sites target diverse audiences, while others attract people based on common language, race, sexual preferences, religion, or nationality. The sites also vary the ways in which the show and incorporate new information and communication tools, like mobile access, blogging, and photo and video sharing. Easily the most common use of Social Networking sites, and the main reason for them existing in the first place, is for personal reasons. It is used for its original purpose – to keep in touch with friends. Some people will go on simply to update their status or view their friends’ statuses, or to look at photos from the weekend’s night out. In the past it would have been nigh on impossible to keep in touch, much less keep up to date with what they are doing.In many ways, social media has led to positive changes in the way people communicate and share information; however, it has a dark side, as well. Social networking can sometimes result in negative outcomes, some with long-term consequences. Just like a coin, social networking, also has two sides. However useful and creative it may be, but it also has its darker side.

you can view video on Social Networking Sites

 

References

  • www.Google.com
  • www.wikipedia.com
  • Social Networking: Its Uses and Abuses by PoojaShelke and AshishBadiye, Research Journal of Forensic Sciences, Vol. 1(1), 2-7, March (2013) Res. J. Forensic Sci. International Science Congress Association
  • Facebook and Psychology: Use and Misuse of Social Networks, Matthew T. Kincheloe, David Weed, & Caleb W. Lack, Recent Advances in Clinical Medicine
  • www.facebook.com
  • www.twitter.com
  • http://danasuaifan.weebly.com/social-networking.html
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_social_networks
  • http://www.bing.com/knows/Social%20networking%20service