Facebook offers fun and distractions to students

Facebook's benefit or detriment depends on how one uses it, according to a Norwich psychology professor.

 Facebook is a powerful social force. That doesn't make it evil, doesn't make it good either," said psychology professor Timothy Thurber. "The people using it make it good or evil."

  Since its creation in February of 2004 by Harvard student Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook as gown to have more than 500 million accounts translated in over 100 languages, according to http://www.insidenetwork.com/. Facebook is here to stay and its ultimate social impact is yet to be felt, Thurber said.

 Brandon Owens, 19, a communications major from Silver Spring, Md., said that "Facebook just allows people to act differently online than they normally would in a face to face situation." Talking to someone online, when there is no personal contact, is much easier than a real conversation, Owens said.

"Facebook causes you to be more open with other individuals," Thurber said. "You may rarely meet any of the people you interact with online."

                As said by sophomore corps member Nathan Jones, 19, a communications major from Prince George, Va., "As a freshman in the corps, Facebook is all there is to do in your free time." The isolation of Norwich compared to what most students are used to is why Facebook became such a popular website last year among rooks, Jones said.

                According to Thurber it is possible that one could actually become addicted to using Facebook. "I can see from a psychological point of view Facebook causing social problems," Thurber said.

                "If you pick up anti-social behaviors because of how you act on Facebook, it is possible to carry that over to how you act in person when around other people," Thurber said.

 According to Joshua Jahangir, 19, a criminal justice major from Santa Barbara, Calif., evidence that Facebook is negatively affecting youth is easy to spot. "I find it ironic that I see young students, who are paying to go to school, who bring their laptops to class just to be on Facebook," Jahangir said. "It just seems like such a waste of money and time."

 When asked about its appeal and possible negative effects Jones said that "social networking is still a relatively new idea, at some point people will realize it is only worth a small amount of their time."

 According to Thurber, Facebook is influential enough to change how we communicate. "It (Facebook) will alter some of the ways we transmit our social values," Thurber said. "Some might instantly see fault with that, when in fact, language and the way we communicate is ever changing. Facebook will eventually change our language, should we be afraid of that? No."

 Owens said that "technology is going to be the death of person to person communication."

 There is a point where entertainment becomes unhealthy, according to Thurber. "Any entertainment, if you take it too far, can change your behavior to interfere with what you need to do," Thurber said.

 According to Owens there is too much pressure on young people these days to conform to changing social norms. "Being just you is not good enough any more," Owens said. "You exist? Okay you need to exist online as well."

For many, having a Facebook has become another part of growing up in this world, Jones said.

   According to Thurber, just like any new piece of technology Facebook is and has been criticized for its possible effects on those who use it.

 "As humans we feel the need to instantly find the negative in anything new," Thurber said. "Facebook is not going to make people abnormal, anymore than it will make people more normal, it is a piece of technology, and just that."

  According to Jahangir the biggest issue with Facebook is the constant flow of otherwise useless information. "Some individuals get so used to this idea of constantly being attached to something that is essentially not there," Jahangir said. "They're attached only to the idea that they're connected."

When asked about issues of privacy and what others can see about you on Facebook, Jones said that "if you don't want something to be known about yourself, you shouldn't put it up on the website in the first place."

Some employers have begun to use Facebook as a means to judge the personal character of an employee.

    According to Jones, his Facebook is not a measure of what his job performance is going to be. "That's just invading someone's privacy, my Facebook doesn't tell you what type of worker I'm going to be," Jones said.

    When asked if it was fair for an employer to look at Facebook, Jahangir said, "Yes, Facebook is a public profile for everyone to see, employer included. It is up to each individual as to what they allow on their profile."

  Thurber said, "If an employee goes and seeks out your profile, and then uses it against you, it is an invasion of privacy."

  Facebook just brings to light what everybody is doing, good or bad, according to Owens. "It's not like people are doing anything worse than what they used to do without Facebook, it's just that now everything is documented and talked about," Owens said. "People need to be careful as to what they put out there about themselves, there is really no such thing as privacy on the internet."

 "One thing that would be helpful is if there was a privacy setting that disabled the ability for just anyone to right click and save a picture of yours to their computer," Owens said.

  As said in Facebook's mission statement: "Facebook's mission is to give people the power to share and make the world more open and connected."

  "Going to college so far away from my hometown, from where all my friends and family are, is difficult sometimes," Jones said. "Facebook is a great tool for me to stay in touch with friends and a way for people to see what I'm doing away from home."

  "I do not even have to be at my computer to get the full use of Facebook," Jones said. "My cell phone is linked directly to the website so wherever I go, I'm always able to communicate."

 According to Jahangir, Facebook is great for seeing what close friends are up to, and seeing upcoming events. "The availability of information about what all my friends are doing is great," Jahangir said. "I can manage friendships with ease, and through similarities in education, age, location, etc. Facebook will make friend suggestions to me, more people to network with."

The reason why so many people use the social networking website is simple, according to Thurber. "You usually don't repeat things that do not cause some sort of pleasure or joy," Thurber said. "Facebook users are getting something out of it that isn't painful."

 "The possible reason why it has become so popular is that Facebook has the ability to appeal to various groups of people," Thurber said. "It has become a tool that does not limit itself to a certain audience."

  The term Facebook friend has a different meaning to everyone, said Jones. "Personally I really do not care who adds me on Facebook," Jones said. "I am careful with what I post and what I say, so there is really no need for me to screen who I'm friends with."

 "If I've spoken more than hello, how are you to them, I consider that a Facebook friend," Owens said. "That does not mean they are a personal friend, but more of an acquaintance."

   According to Jones, the term Facebook friend is a very loosely used. "Social networking is so broad that many of the people you know will not be close friends."

  By the end of 2012 Facebook is expected to have close to 700 million accounts translated in over 175 languages, according to http://www.insidenetwork.com/.