Harm and Offense in Media Content - Research Proposal Example

? SOCIAL NETWORKING – THESIS PROPOSAL goes here] [Your goes here] [Due the paper] Problem ment/Introduction In today’s world, social media seems to have influenced the life of almost every person. There are many types of social media that people use to communicate with each other and develop long-lasting personal and business relationships. Among all those types of social media, the use of social networking websites, such as, Orkut, Facebook, and Twitter seems to be at the highest level. Social networking websites continue to play the most active and influencing role in the lives of people whatever field of life they belong to. However, the impact of using these websites is both positive and negative on the users and it mainly depends on the way people use them and the level of addiction to these websites. Facebook is one of such social networking websites that are being commonly used by the people of all age groups. Although this website provides many communication benefits to people, such as, social interaction with people from different societies, entertainment facilities, information sharing, developing kinship and other relationships, and facility to find old friends, but some harms are also associated with it if one becomes addicted to the use of such websites. Some of those harms or negative effects include wastage of time, development of unhealthy relationships, and threat to personal privacy. This is the problem which needs to be discussed in some detail. Therefore, in this study, the aim of the researcher will be to discuss the negative effects of making heavy use of social networking media, such as, Facebook. The researcher will base the judgments on the research findings. The researcher will also provide some recommendations to reduce the negative consequences of social media. Review of Research Literature As Rennie and Morrison (2013) state, “social networking has become an addictive pastime for many young people as they keep monitoring their site for new activity or comments” (p. 126). Facebook is one of the main examples of such social networking websites that have intruded itself in office, as well as in the home of almost every person. Alba and Stay (2008) state, “Facebook is a networking platform” (p. 24). It is true that Facebook connects people from different parts of the world and helps them in forming communities. Users of Facebook can form communities with no boundaries and geographical limitations. Along with this, Facebook has also made people less individualistic (Miller, 2011, p. 190). However, with all benefits of using this website, there also exist some negative points associated with addiction or heavy use of such websites particularly for teenagers and young adults. Addiction to social networking websites has a number of negative effects (Hargrave & Livingstone, 2009, p. 150). One of the main negative aspects of being addicted to Facebook is that it has reduced interactions between close family members. The reason is that when a person makes use of this website all the time, he/she finds no time to interact with his/her own family members. In many homes, both children and parents stay on their computers (mostly on social networking sites), which causes less face to face interactions between the people living under the same roof. Heavy users of such websites prefer to remain online to chat with others. Excessive use of Facebook has a negative impact on ethics and moral development of young people (Maurieni, 2012). Some other serious concerns regarding heavy usage of Facebook and other social networking websites include decreased affection for close family members, interaction with strangers, and decreased interest in studies (Papacharissi, 2011, p. 74). Increased addiction to internet and social media is becoming a concern in the United States though it is not widely publicized (Lancelot, 2011, p. 92). Users of social networking websites develop relationships with strangers that increase the threat to personal privacy. Posting too much personal information on such websites pose problems for the users (Cohl, 2012, p. 39). Similarly, children do not get much time to focus on their studies properly as the result of which their grades go down. They are not able to perform well in exams. Moreover, some children also disclose very personal information to their unknown internet friends that can prove detrimental at some stage in life. Some people are so much addicted to the use of such websites that they even keep their logins/accounts open all day. Moreover, heavy usage of social networking websites can also cause harm to marital relationships. For example, using such websites, men and women are able to develop illegal sexual relationships with their internet friends that can put their marital relationships at risk. People develop illegal relationships and try to hide them from their real life partners (Boellstorff, 2008, p. 172). Such relationships are dangerous and risky for the continuation of their real marital relationships. Excessive use of networking websites has a negative effect on relationships (Lin & Huang, 2011, p. 420). Therefore, it seems to be true that where social networking websites promotes effective communication and long-term relationships, addiction to these websites is also harmful and unsafe. Guiding Questions The guiding questions for the research will be: (1) What are the negative consequences of being addicted to the use of Facebook and other social networking websites? (2) What is the impact of Facebook addiction on studies and moral development of children and young adults? Research Objectives This study proposes (1) To identify the negative consequences of being addicted to the use of Facebook and other social networking websites, (2) To determine the impact of addiction on moral development of children and young adults, and (3) To know the ways Facebook addiction can be reduced. Research Methods and Procedure Sample In the proposed study, the researcher will study the responses of nearly 100 to 150 school-level and college-level students. The researcher will use questionnaire to get the responses of the participants. To distribute the questionnaire among the desired population, the researcher will use a social media website, Facebook. Snowball sampling technique will be used to find the target population. The questionnaire will be shared with the participants through posting to wall. The researcher will also visit some local schools and colleges to gather data about Facebook usage and consequences. The researcher will also make use of semi-structured interviews to know the viewpoints of heavy users of Facebook. The interviews will be conducted in the participants’ respective schools and colleges which will facilitate students and the researcher, as well as it will save the time at both ends. As far as the duration of the interviews is concerned, each interview will take at least fifteen minutes and responses will be recorded on an audio tape which will then be analyzed to generate the results. Interviews will help in knowing why children and young adults become addicted to the use of social networking websites and the effect of such addiction to their studies and relationships. The researcher will also interview some parents to know what changes they are observing in their children’s behaviors who are addicted to the use of social websites. For questionnaire, the researcher will include the participants based on the following criteria: (a) age limit of 14 to 22 years because this is the age when a person is exposed to society and when new technologies attract them the most, (b) internet usage of at least four hours per day. The ethical consideration for this particular research topic will be the privacy of information provided by the participants. All participants will be taken in confidence by ensuring them that their personal information will not be used elsewhere. There will be a confidential form along with the questionnaire signed by the researcher to guarantee that the obtained information will be used only for this research study. Measures This is going to be a longitudinal study which will determine the consequences of using Facebook for long hours. The participants will be asked to fill in a questionnaire that will be designed to investigate the factors that make them use such websites for long hours and the problems that usually face in getting addicted to the use of such websites. Data gathered from these surveys will provide the researcher with required information about the issue. The questionnaires will be designed using Likert scale model because of its effectiveness in retrieving true results and will be distributed among participants using the same website for which the research is being conducted. The questions included in the questionnaires will be good enough to obtain required information. Some of the main questions included in the questionnaire will be as follows: 1. For how many hours per day you usually use Facebook? 2. What are the factors that attract you the most towards Facebook? 3. What benefits you have perceived regarding the use of Facebook for long hours? 4. What effect does excessive use of Facebook has on your grades? 5. Have you ever found social websites harmful? 6. What do you think about forming relationships on Facebook? Do you think they are harmful? Please include some personal experience. 7. Do you even use Facebook at home? If yes, how much time do you give to your parents and siblings? Analysis Technique The researcher will use qualitative design to conduct this research. This research design will help in getting detailed information about the issue. This research will be helpful in using subjective information to examine the problems that addicted users usually face regarding the use of Facebook and other social networking websites. Quantitative design will not be a viable option for this particular study because it provides generalized results in the form of numbers and figures, which are not very helpful to explain the consequences. As far as storing of obtained information is concerned, the researcher will gather information through interviews (with parents and some students) and questionnaire (sent to target population through Facebook) and will store them in the personal computer system for further analysis and documentation of the final report. The researcher will make use of regression analysis technique which will help in identifying the exact relationship between variables. Regression analysis will help the researcher in knowing the relationship between independent (excessive use of Facebook) and dependent (impact on studies and moral development of children and young adults) variables. If we talk about the authenticity and validity of the research, we can say that there is no evident threat to the validity of the study because the researcher will take information from targeted people, which include parents and real users of Facebook. Anticipated Implications of the Research Study The results of the study will determine the impact of excessive use of Facebook on moral development and grades of children and young adults. The results will also help the researcher in knowing the factors that make people use Fcaebook for long hours. As far as the plan of distributing the questionnaire to the target population using the social networking website is concerned, the researcher believes that it will prove to be successful because participants will not only have an easy access to that but also they will feel safe in filling the questionnaires. This mode of questionnaire distribution will help the researcher locate the target population easily. Moreover, Facebook as the mode of research will not only promote voluntary participation but also it will save research time for the researcher. The reason for why excessive use of social networking websites has become an issue of concern is related directly with the associated consequences for users and their close relationships. Prior researches have not been able to identify and explain such consequences and problems in detail. This is the reason why the need for this particular study arises. The results of this research will be helpful in getting a detailed insight into the reasons that make people become addicted to Facebook, as well as the problems that they encounter in their lives due to excessive use. The results will also be helpful for reducing the use of Facebook at homes for children as parents will become aware of the negative consequences associated with the excessive use of such websites. References Alba, J., & Stay, J. (2008). I’m On Facebook, Now What???. California: Happy About. Boellstorff, T. (2008). Coming of Age in Second Life: An Anthropologist Explores the Virtually Human. New Jersey: Princeton University Press. Cohl, B. (2012). Success For Modern Day Families: Working with Dating, Engaged, and Married Couples. Maryland: Jason Aronson. Hargrave, A., & Livingstone, S. (2009). Harm and Offense in Media Content. Bristol: Intellect Books. Lancelot, M. (2011). Switching Addictions. Arizona: Wheatmark. Lin, S., & Huang, X. (2011). Advances in Computer Science, Environment, Ecoinformatics, and Education. Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag. Maurieni, C. (2012). Facebook is Deception (Volume One). New York, NY: WSIC Ebooks Ltd. Miller, D. (2011). Tales from Facebook. Cambridge: Polity Press. Papacharissi, Z. (2011). A Networked Self: Identity, Community, and Culture on Social Network Sites. New York, NY: Routledge. Rennie, F., & Morrison, T. (2013). E-Learning and Social Networking Handbook: Resources for Higher Education (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Routledge. Read More