Friend Me: The Impact of Social Networking Sites on Friendship

Do you know anyone with 1,734 friends? If so, they are probably on Facebook and are probably a little overzealous with the "accept friend request" button. From July 2007 to July 2008, the worldwide audience (age 15 and over) of Facebook (see left) has gone up 153%. Traffic on similar webpages such as Myspace and Friendster has increased drastically as well. Given this explosion in the global use of social networking sites in the past year alone, it is not at all surprising that there has been increased attention placed on the ways in which visitors utilize these services as well as the potential impact of online friendships. The general consensus is that social networking seems to be changing the face of relationships. However, the extent to which this shift is positive is still up for debate. A study released last year surveyed 200 individuals about their digital activities. Psychologist Will Reader from Sheffield Hallam University found that "although the numbers of friends people have on these sites can be massive, the actual number of close friends is approximately the same in the face to face real world." However, new research presented by Assumption College professor Maria Kalpidou at the APA's 2008 convention proclaimed different results. Professor Kalpidou found that university freshman who began school with 200 or more individuals as part of their internet cohort scored lower on measures of self esteem and adjustment than did students who started the fall semester with a smaller online peer group. While these findings may point us toward divergent interpretations, I think that it is the nature of conversation rather than the face of friendship that is evolving with the increased use of sites such as Facebook.

There is no question that the first day of school is difficult for many individuals because it is not always easy to make new friends. Friendships require work and develop only as people contribute tidbits of personal information and share laughs. For shy or inhibited newbies, online forums can be a less threatening medium in which to take risks and open oneself up for possible rejection. In fact, many universities encourage students to "meet" hallmates and choose their roommates through forums. For example, USC now uses an online profile and forum to assist students in finding roommates for student housing. As Dr. Kalpidou's research illustrates, it is nonetheless important to note that problems can arise when internet communication is one of the only modes of interaction an individual engages in. If someone has more than two hundred acquaintances on Facebook prior to even arriving at their university, there is a two-fold problem. First, it is possible that the two hundred friends are from high school and difficulty leaving these relationships behind can lead to what has been called "friendsickness," the preoccupation with and concern for the loss of or change in precollege friendships. This theory has been shown by psychologists Elizabeth Paul and Sigal Briar to be a "significant source of distress for college students [and] affecting college adjustment" because it is characterized by a steady focus on past relationships that have changed or been lost . This type of "backward focusing" leaves the individual feeling incompetent as a friend and often so grief-stricken that they have no energy or want to invest in new relationships. Paul and Briar estimate that 50% of college students experience feelings of friendsickness and 40% of these individuals did not have new college friends ten weeks into their first semester. These results are so important because the first semester of college lays out the framework for attainment and completion. If the student becomes low-functioning during this time, their future success in college is at steak. Further, the preoccupying nature of the Facebook website only exacerbates the issue by enabling depressed students to stay secluded and refrain from engaging in any face-to-face activities with their new schoolmates.

Prosocial behavior is a necessity when trying to develop a peer group, and provided that most people are not keeping themselves isolated, the advent of Friendster and Facebook can actually aid in this arena. The conversation started over coffee can be continued via a wall post. Further, communication with peers that are studying abroad is no-longer just an over-the-phone or pen-pal ordeal. Rather, two individuals cannot only chat, but also share pictures of their adventures or give a virtual gift in real time. In Dr. Reader's study, participants had met 90% of the contacts they regarded as "close friends." Other research confirms the assertion that networking sites facilitate and expand conversation. Ellison and colleagues found a strong relationship between Facebook use and the formation and maintenance of social capital. They go on to note that "for individuals, social capital allows a person to draw on resources from other members of the networks to which he or she belongs. These resources can take the form of useful information, personal relationships, or the capacity to organize groups." Similarly, in an endeavor to discover the profile of the "typical" social networking site user, Eszter Hargittai of Northwestern University found that students who did not live on campus were less likely to utilize web-based services. She concluded that this trend implies "Facebook use is mostly for keeping in touch with students on one's campus whom one sees during day-to-day college life." Thus, it seems as though for most people, websites such as Myspace are simply used to continue the conversation, not to start it.

With over 21 million registered members and 1.6 billion page views each day, there is no question that Facebook and related social networking sites are at the epicenter of communication among college-aged individuals (and even some older adults). For an alarmingly large number of students mourning the loss of their high school friendships, Facebook might be inhibiting their adjustment to college life by enabling them to remain isolated. Recognition of the problem and intervention for these students probably lies in the hands of high school counselors who can be trained to recognize early warning signs of friendsickness such as avoidance of post high school decisions and withdrawl. Nonetheless, it is important to note that friendships and the work necessary to create and maintain those relationships have not changed. Trouble with the transition to college cannot be blamed on Facebook. While it may be enabling students, individuals who are using it as a replacement for "live" friendships are not exhibiting prosocial behavior to begin with. Research nevertheless indicates that for the majority of college students, social networking sites have catalyzed the rapid evolution of the ability to communicate and the essence conversation which has lead to more engaging social capital.