Effects of Social Networking on Social Relationships

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While social networking has become justly famous in the world of politics and social struggle, its more common and widespread use is in the more local domain of personal relationships. In this area we can also see many positive developments. On a basic level, social networking sites have proven to be a very efficient way of establishing and maintaining relationships with friends and relatives. On this score, a recent survey of US college students found that the most attractive feature of Facebook was its ability to help users track down old school friends (Pempek et al. 2009). Another undoubted appeal is the role that social networking can play in facilitating romantic relationships, although evidence suggests that the extent of this use may be overestimated (Pempek et al. 2009). Perhaps the most powerful use in this form of relationship building is the development of networks around shared interests and circumstances. Social networking has become a dynamic way for the young to build relationships around cultural interests and artifacts; it can also support close online communities around the idea of self-help, for example, among sufferers of certain medical conditions (Preece & Maloney- Krichmar 2005). There are however a number of worrying aspects about this interpersonal dimension of social media. Some studies have shown that the quality of relationships with friends can deteriorate where social media has replaced face-to-face communication (Kujath 2011). There is the suggestions too that in spite of the greater interconnectedness it creates, social-networking sites like Facebook and MySpace can in fact leave some people feeling more lonely and isolated (Cacioppo & Patrick 2009). As Cacioppo and Patrick (2009, p.46) explain: “For people who are already feeling lonely, Facebook status updates are just a reminder of how much better everyone else is

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