Online friends and social development
Introduction
The advent of the internet provided an opportunity for people to create and maintain online profiles and friends, an impact aspect of online friends is that it is gradually becoming integrated into the social circle of individuals (Buote & Wood, 2009). This integration into the social circles of individuals implies that online interactivity plays an integral role in their social development. Online friends, just like the real life context, provide an avenue effective functioning of the social relationships within adolescents; this is because adolescents are more attached to individuals outside the family circle, and the online social networks provide a perfect opportunity for the development of such social relationships attachment (Mesch, 2009). In addition, online friendships provide a framework for the development of social capital of an individual
Online friendship is similar to conventional friendship in various ways. For instance, most online friendships are established for the sake of common interest of both parties such as dating or any other common social factor. Online friendship is also similar to conventional friendship in the sense that its development is based on the mutual trust that exists between the various parties, and in most cases, trust is achieved after considerable measure and evaluation of the online profiles, this is similar to real life friendship in the sense that the development of conventional friendship depends on the continual interaction between the friendship entities (Mesch, 2009). A notable difference between online friendship and conventional friendship is that real world relationships are more physical and interactive compared to online friendships, which depend on the frequency of a person’s use of the internet. In addition, online friendships are less likely to last long due to trust and security issues associated with identities posted in social profiles
It can be argues that online social friendships provide an avenue through which adolescents can develop their interpersonal skills, such as negotiating, identity revelation and taking intom account the diverse viewpoints found in the online environment. This is because adolescents usually take some considerable time to evaluate the nature and the benefits that may result from maintaining such relationships (Mesch, 2009).
References
Buote, V., & Wood, E. (2009). Exploring the similarities and differences between online and
offline friendships: the role of attachment. Computers in Human Behavior , 561-563.
Mesch, G. (2009). Explaining the Differential Quality of Online and Off Line Relationships: The
Role of Multiplexity and Duration. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the
American Sociological Association. Marriott Hotel, Loews Philadelphia Hotel,
Philadelphia, PA.
