In “The Benefits of Facebook ‘Friends:’ Social Capital and College Students’ Use of Online Social Network Sites,” Nicole B. Ellison, Charles Steinfield and Cliff Lampe argue that there is a strong positive relationship between one’s Facebook use and one’s social capital, specifically in terms of “bridging social capital.”
Ellison, Steinfield and Lampe first define the term social capital as “the resources accumulated through the relationships among people,” and then go on to differentiate between the three types of social capital: bridging social capital, bonding social capital, and maintained social capital (1145). “Bridging social capital” refers to the “weak ties” or loose connections that one may use to get new information/new perspectives as opposed to emotional support, while “bonding social capital” refers to one’s more close-knit social circle of family and friends. The third category, “maintained social capital,” refers to one’s ability to stay connected with people they already know. The authors note that internet use has been shown to have both positive and negative impacts on social capital. On one hand, increased internet communication often leads to a decrease in face-to-face interaction, which can be socially disadvantageous. Even so, the majority of past research indicates that internet communication can actually improve one’s social capital, as it enhances one’s ability to maintain connections and to more easily connect with a broader scope of people.
To investigate the correlation, the authors conducted a survey with 800 students from Michigan State University (MSU). The survey analyzed various factors, including the intensity of one’s facebook usage, one’s self-esteem, life satisfaction at MSU, and measures that gauge bridging social capital, bonding social capital, and maintained social capital. Results showed that there is a definite positive relationship between Facebook use and the maintenance/creation of social capital, especially with bridging social capital (1163). These results didn’t surprise me, and I feel very similarly in terms of my own social media use. Many of the study’s participants said they used Facebook to stay connected with high school acquaintances and people they knew in an MSU context. I similarly use social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram to stay connected with not only people involved in my current life, but people from my past as well. While one could argue that being “Facebook friends” with someone I met five years ago is completely unnecessary, staying up-to-date with these “looser ties” provides a sense of comfort. It’s socially reassuring to know that there are people there for me, even if I don’t actively converse with them individually. In terms of limitations, the authors mentioned that the majority of the study participants were active Facebook users. This probably means that most people surveyed have a positive relationship with Facebook, and obviously enjoy using the website. That being said, the results likely skewed toward a more positive relationship. I am curious if results would differ had a wider age demographic been questioned, including a variety of people who were less internet-savvy.
Hi Jamie! I agree with your personal takeaways from the study, especially about how keeping up with our ‘bridging social capital’ can bring a sense of comfort. For me, Facebook is the sole way I keep up with my relatives who are much older than me and live around the country. Although I wouldn’t consider myself close enough to them to call them up or personally message them, Facebook allows me to feel in the loop of their lives. When I do see my relatives in person, I have a better sense of what is going on in their lives and as a result, I have more positive interactions with those relatives. My caveat with this study was that it was done with a sample of college students who were already active on Facebook. With many studies in this field, limiting the sample to just university students is limiting the study to look through a pin hole. I think opening up these studies to include wider ranges of demographics would bring more insight into society’s social media use as a whole.
This is interesting to see how Facebook served as an early technological way of using social media to “accumulate friendships” virtually, signifying more social connections and networking, a.k.a “social capital.” The positive link between Facebook use and growing social capital shows that social media can help us stay connected with people who are geographically separated from us, so we can stay up to date and maintain connection despite distance. As generations shift to favoring new platforms with time in society, I believe that my generation uses Instagram more heavily in recent years than Facebook to stay close to people we have not seen since high school, etc. Instagram is crucial for social networking with my friends from previous internships, and even people on Lehigh’s campus that I no longer cross paths with in class schedules.