Identifying Social Capital in the Facebook Interface
A number of studies have identified a robust relationship between the use of social network sites, particularly Facebook, and positive outcomes such as social capital. Social network site use is often measured as a function of use frequency, network size, and a range of subjective opinions about the value of the site. This research extends this understanding by exploring the relationship between the use of particular elements of the site and social capital. Our goal in this research is to identify where, in the interface, perceived social capital is most effectively produced and transmitted. We find that, as hypothesized, public, person-to-person communication is positively associated with perceived social capital. Through the use of a structural equation model, we are able to provide in-depth exploration of the relationship between the interface elements and the outcome, perceived social capital.
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Identifying Social Capital in the Facebook Interface
- 1. Identifying Social Capital in the Facebook Interface " Christian Yoder" UNC-Chapel Hill/Sciences Po! ! Fred Stutzman" UNC-Chapel Hill/Carnegie Mellon!
- 2. Socio-Technical" Social Capital" • Putnamʼs framework! – Bonding! – Bridging! • Ellison et al.! – Relationship between social capital and Facebook use! • What types of uses are associated with acquisition of bridging social capital?!
- 3. Communication Elements" Chatting Direct Messaging 1-to-1 Status Updates 3rd Party Wall Posts Visible
- 4. 3rd-Party Visible " Status Updates" Wall Posts" Message " A" B" Message " C"
- 5. 1-to-1 Communication" Chatting" Direct Messaging" Message " A" B" Message " C"
- 6. Our Hypotheses" 1-1 to Comm." H1 " Chat! Direct Msg.! H3" Second Perceived Bridging SC " relationship stronger than first! 3rd party Comm." H2" Status Update! Wall Posts ! Perceived Bridging SC"
- 7. Results" • Web survey, spring 2010! • List-based simple random sample, 547 respondents! • Developed measures to capture interface use! • Gender, campus residency, school year controls! • Ellison et al. perceived bridging social capital as DV! Predictor Coefficient P-‐Value Status Update -‐0.098 0.418 Wall Post 0.405 0.003** 3rd Party" Chat 0.094 0.259 Direct Message 0.040 0.640 1-to-1 " Gender -‐0.189 0.005** Live on Campus? -‐0.033 0.646 School Year -‐0.004 0.885
- 8. Why not status updates?" Status Updates! Wall Posts! Message ! Status A" Update! B" Message ! • Less focused! C" • Not directed!
- 9. Notes and Discussion" • How might this look on other SNSs?! • Implications for social capital in systems! • How far can we go with self-measures? ! • Bonding social capital not included! ! Thanks to! • Professors Paul Jones and Jane Brown, Honors Thesis Committee! • UNC JOMC Knight Chair Special Gift Fund!