Social Nrtworing

Social network sites (SNSs) such as Facebook, Myspace, Cyworld and Bebo have not only attracted millions of people throughout the world but the majority of users are found to access these sites on a daily basis. SNSs provide people with an array of technological features which support their wide range of interests (Boyd & Ellison, 2007). This increased use of the internet as a tool in communication has changed the way people interact with each other especially on SNSs like Facebook. (Raacke & Bonds-Raacke, 2007). Gone are the days when you would write down you home phone number and expect a call on your home phone or a message on your answering machine. In today’s current “technological savvy” society, it would appear that our every day language has changed from “I’ll call you” to “I’ll add you”. College students in particular have been found to spend a significant amount o their day on SNSs either making new friends or locating old ones and maintaining current friends.

As well as allowing people to maintain pre-existing social networks, some SNSs allow strangers who share common interests such as activities, political views and hobbies to also connect with each other. (Boyd & Ellison, 2007). This meeting or connection with strangers is unique in that SNSs enable their users to articulate and make their profiles visible which usually results in people connecting with friends of friends which otherwise or in the “real world” may not have transpired. (Raacke & Bonds-Raacke, 2008). Boyd & Ellison (2007) define SNSs as “web-based services” that allow people to construct a public or semi-public profile within an enclosed structure and articulate a list of other users with whom they share a connection Certain other features like testimonials, the abilty to join groups of shared interest and the ability to post pictures are also increasingly incorporated into online SNSs however, Boyd & Ellison (2007) point out that the nature and categorization of these connections...