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Abstract
Internet has been a useful in providing information and bringing news concerning the business world and the entertainment world. The use of internet has been made even possible through the existence of Wi-Fi in which people are able to access the internet at any period of the day. Among the many users of social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, young adults are considered to be the most proactive particularly in constantly updating their status. In a paper-and-pencil survey provided to 545 young adults of diverse backgrounds, most of them were ages 21 or 22, over 507 of the respondents claimed that they were using social media sites. Social media has led people to become more interactive not only with their friends but also with people of different cultures. Social media such as Facebook, Tagged, and Twitter, has enhanced human relationships and has made families become even closer. MySpace and Facebook are two of the best known sites for making friends online and it is these social media sites and irresponsible behaviour online that become the primary roots of online bullying. Social media such as Facebook, Tagged, and Twitter has also been a major player in today’s process of seeking employment. This paper presents the impacts of social media on groups and human development.
Introduction
Internet has been a useful in providing information and bringing news concerning the business world and the entertainment world. Internet speaks about modernity and how it has brought people together in business and in social media. Through the use of the internet, various social media sites emerged and strengthened the relationships among people. The use of social media has resulted to greater interaction not only with friends but also with people from other cultures.
Everything that pertains to technology has been developed with Wi-Fi ready. This implies that internet is easily accessible at any period of the day. Fundamentally, internet could have been a tool with varied used if it was really utilized for its real purpose. Internet for many learners is a great basis of thousands of resources for research topics. But then, internet possesses a world of its own which is not bounded by any rules. In addition, despite the fact that websites have their policies, these are not sufficient enough to fully control the activities of the youths. Further, the policies are not as robust as the promulgated laws because these policies are not definitely imposed upon the users.
Demographics in Social Media Sites
Among the many users of social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, young adults are considered to be the most proactive particularly in constantly updating their status. Young adults are associated with the notion that they opt to share information instead of protecting their privacy online. Rick Nauert (2014) claims that social media sites are significant for individuals who are seeking jobs. Demographics play a part in suitable media management. Researchers at the Northwestern University found that Hispanics and those who have low internet skills are seldom able to get employment-related audiences especially when it pertains to online profiles. Whites, women and those with greater internet skills are likely to handle their privacy settings in social media as they look for a job (Nauert, 2014). Online status management approaches have impact on individuals seeking employment. In the absence of privacy settings and the use of inappropriate comments or pictures on social media can damage the chance of getting a job. Social media privacy has been greatly difficult to manage because a site’s setting can rapidly change. If the users are not constantly updating and checking their setting, this could inadvertently expose parts of the profile to the public even if it has been set to restricted access (Nauert, 2014).
In a paper-and-pencil survey provided to 545 young adults of diverse backgrounds, most of them were ages 21 or 22, over 507 of the respondents claimed that they were using social media sites (Nauert, 2014). Such study was disseminated and gathered through conventional postal mail in the summer of 2012 and was intended to evaluate the extent to which young individuals check their self-presentation on Facebook and Twitter and other social media sites as well as their privacy-related knowledge and internet skills (Nauert, 2014).
Impacts of Social Media
Internet is a big business per se. And being a business, the main purpose of websites is to generate profit. This case is certainly applicable in various social media sites. Through internet, various social media sites have been put up to strengthen the relationships among people. Social media has led people to become more interactive not only with their friends but also with people of different cultures. Social media such as Facebook, Tagged, and Twitter, has enhanced human relationships and has made families become even closer. Social media sites bring together people from different nations. A constant communication with other people has made relationships better. Families have been positively influenced by the technological advances. Family members are sometimes separated by distances because of economic condition. However, the power of social media has made communication lines open for all members. Families can spend time interacting without worries of expensive payments of phone bills. All these can seem to present the usefulness of technology and social media sites. But what if the youths go beyond the norms?
MySpace and Facebook are two of the best known sites for making friends online (Fleming 2008). Often, it is these social media sites and irresponsible behaviour online that become the primary roots of online bullying. There is a growing concern in this case. According to Strom and Strom (48), “there is a corresponding need to become informed about the dark side of Internet communication. Cyber bullying relies on an online medium to frighten, threaten, or harm others. Texting, instant messaging, chat rooms, blogs, online voting booths, and email are tools bullies apply to inflict humiliation, fear, and helplessness.”
Social media such as Facebook, Tagged, and Twitter has also been a major player in today’s process of seeking employment (Smith, 2013). Some employers have been using social media to obtain a glimpse of how the applicant is other than what are stated in cover letter, resume, or interview (Smith, 2013). There are over millions of people engaged in social media. In a survey conducted by Lee Hecht Harrison, it was discovered that 48% of individuals are active on social media on a daily basis while 19% claimed that they visit the sites two to three times every week (Smith, 2013). In a survey participated by 2,203 hiring managers as well as human resource professionals, they were asked how and why they use social media in their hiring procedure (Smith, 2013). Most common response was to assess the personality and character of the applicants and how they present themselves professionally.
As the world turns increasingly linked by way of social media, workers are interrelating more with supervisors, coworkers, and other specialized contacts in online social media (Ollier-Malaterre, Rothbard, and Berg, 2013). A number of these online media, including Facebook and Twitter, are social spaces where collaborations can be personal and professional. Involvement in these media results in a possible collision of personal and professional worlds that may open up opportunities and establish challenges for workers as they struggle to create and preserve respect as well as liking in the eyes of their specialized contacts.
Digital identity defines the person to potential recruiters and employers who are seeking online. If the person really wants to progress and push his or her career forward, a lot of experts recommend that identity management in social network sites must be taken seriously (DesMarais, 2014). Through the use of right photos, right words, and social media chat online can provide a good impression to employers. On the contrary, wrong ones can turn off employers (DesMarais, 2014).
Conclusion
The development and status of social media online in the previous years has transformed the internet ecosystem leading to greater collaborative environment. At the moment, there are over millions of users online that are actively involved in social media, produce and make use of media content in varied ways, and establish communities. Social media have gone through a remarkable progress in the past years. These media offer an exceedingly suitable space to immediately share multimedia information amid internet users. Social media offer a strong mirror of the arrangement and dynamics of the society and the collaboration of the internet generation with people and technology. Certainly, the remarkable development of social multimedia as well as user produced content is transforming all aspects of the content value chain such as production of goods, processing, distribution of goods, and consumption. It also derived and conveyed to the multimedia segment a novel underestimated and crucial facet of science and technology; media and social interaction. The importance of this novel fast developing research aspect is evidenced by various related emerging applications and technologies including internet content sharing services as well as communities, communication through multimedia over the internet, search for social multimedia, interactive entertainment and services, security and health care applications.
REFERENCES
Journals
Fleming, DL 2008, 'Youthful Indiscretions: Should Colleges Protect Social Network Users from Themselves and Others?', New England Journal Of Higher Education, 22, 4, pp. 27-29, ERIC, EBSCOhost, viewed 30 May 2014
Ollier-Malaterre, A. Rothbard, N. and Berg, J. 2013 ‘When Worlds Collide in Cyberspace: How Boundary Work in Online Social Media Impacts Professional Relationships’, Academy Of Management Review, 38, 4, pp. 645-669, Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 30 May 2014
Sacks, M, & Graves, N 2012, 'How Many “Friends” Do You Need? Teaching Students How to Network Using Social Media',Business Communication Quarterly, 75, 1, pp. 80-88, Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 30 May 2014.
Websites
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Nauert, R. 2014. » Managing Online Profiles An Important Part of Job-Seeking - Psych Central News. [online] Available at: http://psychcentral.com/news/2013/07/15/managing-online-profiles-an-important-part-of-job-seeking/57217.html [Accessed: 30 May 2014].
Smith, J. 2013. How Social Media Can Help (Or Hurt) You In Your Job Search. [online] Available at: http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2013/04/16/how-social-media-can-help-or-hurt-your-job-search/ [Accessed: 30 May 2014].
Strom, P and Strom R. 2013 "Growing Up with Social Media and Online Communities." Available at: http://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ999434 [Accessed: 30 May 2014].
