College students' social networking experiences on Facebook

Millions of contemporary young adults use social networking sites. However, little is known about how much, why, and how they use these sites. In this study, 92 undergraduates completed a diary-like measure each day for a week, reporting daily time use and responding to an activities checklist to as...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of applied developmental psychology 2009-05, Vol.30 (3), p.227-238
Main Authors: Pempek, Tiffany A., Yermolayeva, Yevdokiya A., Calvert, Sandra L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adolescent development
Adult. Elderly
Biological and medical sciences
Check Lists
Computer Mediated Communication
Developmental psychology
Diaries
Emerging adulthood
Facebook
Friends
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Identity
Interaction
Interpersonal Relationship
Media
Online social networking
Peer Relationship
Peer relationships
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Social Networks
Surveys
Undergraduate Students
Web Sites
Young Adults
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Summary:Millions of contemporary young adults use social networking sites. However, little is known about how much, why, and how they use these sites. In this study, 92 undergraduates completed a diary-like measure each day for a week, reporting daily time use and responding to an activities checklist to assess their use of the popular social networking site, Facebook. At the end of the week, they also completed a follow-up survey. Results indicated that students use Facebook approximately 30 min throughout the day as part of their daily routine. Students communicated on Facebook using a one-to-many style, in which they were the creators disseminating content to their friends. Even so, they spent more time observing content on Facebook than actually posting content. Facebook was used most often for social interaction, primarily with friends with whom the students had a pre-established relationship offline. In addition to classic identity markers of emerging adulthood, such as religion, political ideology, and work, young adults also used media preferences to express their identity. Implications of social networking site use for the development of identity and peer relationships are discussed.
ISSN:0193-3973
1873-7900
DOI:10.1016/j.appdev.2008.12.010