Research proposal

Hillary Gil

English 202 12:30 pm

Fall 2009

Who is the real friend online?

Abstract: The role of online social networks is to expand a person's social environment, but is there a limit to how social your circle should become.  In this generation, the networks and applications gaining popularity among adults and teens are Facebook, MySpace, and E-harmony.  How do these networks maintain confidential information/privacy? How can one distinguish between an online identity that's falsified or how can we protect our own?  How much should we rely on these social networks for means of communication .Through research and peer surveys, two different age groups can be observed in how they interact with the same social networks.  

Introduction:

 Students of this generation are more accustomed to the new advance technologies make it accessible for them to stay connected through their social web. These social networking sites (SNSs) have become the leading form of communication and have changed the line of communication into something interactive and addicting to the common user.  These social networks "allow individuals to present themselves, articulate their social networks, and establish or maintain connections with others." (Kevin, Jason, Nicholas, 2008) What is the special ingredient that draws individuals to use these networks?  Why is it that these social networks help friends communicate between themselves when apart, but even when friends are together they still are drawn into the online social profiles? These profiles allow individuals the freedom to post messages, comments and personal information about you such as interests and favorites. However is this freedom a little too much?

                Out of the SNS networks that have emerged recently, the most popular used among students are Facebook, MySpace, Friendster or Skype. These networks have similar applications and windows that allow communication and allow pictures to be shown in albums to share with friends. However, the privacy settings for these networks vary. Facebook, attracting the most users, has privacy settings that are the most advanced. Unlike MySpace, "Through Facebook elaborate privacy settings, users also have extremely nuanced control over the extent to which friends, peers and strangers can access different parts of their profile and monitor their online activity" (Kevin, Jason, Nicholas,2008). What  

4. Fieldwork

The best way to gather my research is to survey the population that is most familiar with these social networks.  When presenting my research question I can survey related question such as: What number of people that trust Facebook on a high level or not at all? Which network is more preferred between MySpace and Face book and why? Is e-harmony online dating service considered secure and should there be stricter implications of safety for this network?

-should there be programs incorporated in the social networks to increase privacy and avoid people that you may not well know?

Conversations:

-The physiological aspect that adults are interacting with kids' social lives can have negative effects.

-  Through social networks how have individuals targeted computer users, intentionally harming them by virtual harassment?

-   What is the ingredient behind these social networks that keeps drawing people in?

-Do online personalities convey the same personality outside the virtual world?

What ways can online communication put a damper on face-to face communication.

-explain how selecting contacts you know for programs such as chat with video is a safety measure

The age groups that would be surveyed on the use of these social networks are adults, pre-teens and teens.

Teens-could be my fellow peers and sibling's friends

Pre-teens-neighbors or at the local middle school/High School

Adults-Neighbors/ friends or professors

In order to conduct my survey I can formulate a list of questions for people to answer privately on individual surveys and also ask them questions in person as discussion. This way I can get an accurate reading for my survey. (I can talk about why I chose this way to survey people; the physiological aspect of answering question in front of people seem similar to be conformed to one answer)

5. Source Review/Conversations:

            Overview of my sources includes information about social networks and how crucial it is to know you are communicating with online so that there is no potential threat.

"Facebookers -beware "informs Facebook users to be cautious who they become friends with; using the "Friend" action and what networks to be associated with such as school, town or club. Also the article mentioned that privacy is a very important issue. Facebook users need to be aware what personal information can be leaked and how to avoid hackers from hacking your own profile page. ( an incident seen using the social network "MySpace".) The article also briefly explains how to protect your profile by installing anti viruses ware and creating strong passwords to prevent identity hacks.

 I also have an article that shows the need for adults and kids should socialize on separate networks to avoid any mature content to be given out and future occurrences that resulted in the circumstances of this article.

Annals of crime-Friend Game --This article brings to attention a neighborhood crime that happened over the internet. Megan Meir was a victim of verbal abuse through online chat and through many social networks her self-esteem decreased. She committed suicide after an exchange of hostile messages with a boy who had befriended her on MySpace. As Collins state in the article, "Like many teen-agers, Megan and her peers carried on an online social life that was more mercurial, and perhaps more crucial to their sense of status and acceptance, than the one they inhabited in the flesh." This article touches more on the idea that such social networks should not take so much importance and should not become a reality popularity contest. Also when people make comments online it is not the same emotional intent you meant to project as if it were in person. In concluding the case with Megan Meir, Tina Meir commented, "I know that they did not physically come up to our house and tie a belt around her neck," Tina Meier told Pokin. "But when adults are involved and continue to screw with a thirteen-year-old--with or without mental problems--it is absolutely vile." (Pokin did not name the Drews.)

 6. MLA bibliography

Emily Tan. "Facebookers Beware -- Online Identity Theft on the Rise". Lemon drop.com. 24 February 2009. web. 27 Oct 2009.

Gelfand, Alexander. "Startup plans to solve online identity theft but does anyone care?" wired.com. 8 Feb. 2008. (17pgs) <http://www.wired.com/politics/security/news/2008/02/credentica>

Ginger, Jeff. "The Facebook Project - Performance and Construction of Digital Identity". Ilinois.edu. 4.08.2009. <https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/handle/2142/8818>

Gross, Ralph; Acquiste Alessandro. Information Revelation and Privacy in Online Social Networks (The Facebook Case). Carnegie Mellon University.  http://www.heinz.cmu.edu/~acquisti/papers/privacy-facebook-gross-acquisti.pdf.

Lewis, Kevin. Kaufman, Jason. Christakis, Nicholas. The Taste for Privacy: An analysis of College Student Privacy settings in an Online Social Network. Harvard University. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication; Nov2008, Vol. 14 Issue 1, p79-100, 22p.