Students transitioning from high school to college
Students transitioning from high school to college marks a milestone in their personal and social development. They get to leave their parents, high school friends and their normal environments for a new setting knowing that the end goal is to graduate from college and obtain a degree. As students grow into adulthood, not only do they undertake more demanding responsibilities, but are also forced to adapt to certain changes.
Students' need for social integration in college
Students are required to interact and socialize with many different people from different backgrounds and cultures, which can be an overwhelming task, especially as college populations tend to be considerably larger than that of their respective high schools. Hence, students will feel a compelling need to socially integrate within their respective colleges as a subjective sense of content and conformity while in college. With the rapid development of technology, students have taken advantage of the various social media platforms especially Facebook to socially conform and connect with others in order to partially achieve their criteria of social integration. In this paper, I will be addressing the question: How does the use of social media affect social adjustment for students in colleges? To answer this question, I will be discussing about the benefits, harms and purposes of utilizing social media, using primarily Facebook as an example.
Defining social media
Before attempting to answer the topic question, the perception of social media needs to be discussed for contextual background purposes. What is Social Media? Social media can be considered as "any website that enables its users to have social interaction is considered a social media site, including social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace, Instagram, and Twitter" (O'Keeffe, 800). Gwenn Schurbid O'Keeffe also goes on to state that gaming sites or virtual worlds and video sites are also part of Social Media. She has a doctorate and has authored multiple journals on cyber security, and so she provides accredited information throughout her journal and cites other secondary sources. Due to the rapid growth of technology, Social Media has become so widespread and ubiquitous to the point whereby infants, teens and adolescents have started using it as a platform for a multitude of reasons. Popular social media sites such as Facebook and twitter have become very important communication channels through which individuals get to share news and information, and also manage their social ties. Gray (194) describes social media as a group of digital platforms that allow people to create and exchange user-generated content directly with other people. In these social sites, the users get to create user profiles, develop connections with people they may or may not know, and engage in active interactions that enable them to sustain the existing relationships.
The impact of social media on social adjustment
According to a poll, "22% of teenagers log on to their favorite social media site more than ten times a day" (O'Keeffe, 800). She uses percentages about the usage of Social Media to back up her statements with numbers. This means that a large part of teens, adolescents and young adults' social and emotional development occurs on the "internet and on cell phones" (O'Keeffe, 800). Facebook, a popular social media platform, has become "the site most embedded in the lives of U.S. college students" (Gray, 194). College students are more likely to use social media to seek or acquire the relevant social support or adjustment to new environments because they engage actively in the use of social media platforms on a daily basis. As a result, users subconsciously obtain neurological impulses when utilizing Social Media Websites such as Facebook, which affects their perceptions when using it during their time in college. They have both positive and negative perceptions of Social Media platforms which affects their social integration. Previous research indicates that new environments, new roles and responsibilities, changes in habits such as sleeping and eating, and increase in the workload of an individual are some of the major causes of stress especially for college students (Gray, 195).
The benefits of using social media
Social media allows users to develop their social skills and connect with those that are important when offline, along with sharing and developing their own interests. Nowadays, almost everyone uses a Social Media Platform to connect with someone that they don't have to be physically present there to establish some form of rapport. People can exchange and share different ideas with multiple others simply through one medium whether it be a blog, message, or video. This is much more beneficial than reaching out to people individually which would be much more time consuming and take more effort. For college students, this is particularly important as they take up more responsibilities and feel that they don't have the time to tangibly connect with people. Also, users can enhance their "creativity through development and sharing of artistic and musical endeavors" (O'Keeffe, 801). Discussions on the social media platforms can happen with people of different backgrounds and cultures, who can share different perspectives on various aspects of life. Users may not be as close to such people as these who may possibly have opinions about a situation in real life. Hence, social media avails a platform for such discussions to take place and let users share and receive knowledge about the issue. It can mimic situations whereby college students are constantly meeting new people and discussing different issues. By being used to such situations on Social Media, they won't feel unfazed when having academic discussions and hence feel like they have conformed to society as opposed to feeling left out. However, there are disadvantages with using social media that can profoundly affect one's adjustment in college settings.
The negative effects of using social media
The use of Social Media can create a distorted reality and a harmful environment for users. Cyberbullying is a major prevalent issue that is widespread among all forms of Social Media, and can have adverse effects on users, especially the vulnerable groups such as the younger ones. It can be defined as "deliberately using digital media to communicate false, embarrassing, or hostile information about another person" (O'Keeffe, 801). These effects could be "psychosocial outcomes including depression, anxiety, severe isolation, and, tragically, suicide" (O'Keeffe, 801). This is particularly concerning as it does not only affect social integration with society but also mental health. O'Keeffe (801) cleverly elucidates an argument about the benefits of Social Media by discussing its negatives. She goes on to state that when users are cyberbullied, they may have a twisted view of the Social Media platforms and may not be able to notice the benefits they can make use of, which can have an impact of social integration.
The phenomenon of "Facebook Depression"
A phenomenon that relates to the negative use of Social media is "Facebook Depression". This is described as "the depression that develops when preteens and teens spend a great deal of time on social media sites, such as Facebook" (O'Keeffe, 801). Facebook users essentially feel an implicit pressure to feel a sense of acceptance by their fellow peers. They feel the need to be active if their online friends are, so that they remain relevant. It almost replicates that of real life and replaces its importance. An example would be that "high school students often use Facebook to post pictures of excessive drinking behavior" (DeAndrea, 2). DeAndrea, a professor in the School of Communications at Ohio State University, uses this example to argue his point that social networking does not "unequivocally conclude that increased usage of social media will result in positive outcomes". He states that high schoolers sense the need to appear cool to their peers and show them the 'extravagant' things going on in their lives. This intertextual congruency strengthens the claim that "Facebook Depression" exists and it can have profound effects on students in college. Without knowing many others, there might be an external pressure for students to create superficial first impressions. This fallacious idea distorts reality and leads students to feel that it's necessary for social integration.
Colleges utilizing social media for social integration
Colleges have taken advantage of social media platforms for students to ease in with their transition into college. Numerous colleges have managed to help build up social encouragement and networks for newly enrolled students for peer-bolstering gatherings. Online connections are being created to expand rapport among students and even staff who can better communicate with prospective students and inform them of important details. Facilitators typically use Facebook, a prominent social media platform, to connect students with similar interests, residence halls, majors etc. so that they can network easily without having to be physically present. "Research on Facebook has shown that students may reap social benefits from using the site" (DeAndrea, 16). DeAndrea (16) makes a counter-argument with relation to Facebook depression and articulates about the benefits. According to Gray, most studies indicate that the advantages of using social media by college students outweigh the disadvantages, hence social media remains to be an important tool for enhancing and promoting social integration.
Conclusion
The outcomes from using social media completely depend on the user and his or her perception from it. If he or she has negative experiences, not only does it affect social adjustment, but it can also affect his or her mental health along with different tasks that they perform in a negative way. This topic is very important as social media's pervasive nature influences users, and particularly college students as they tend to mature and start to hold their own beliefs. Social media usage helps to shape relationships, develop connections between different people, helps to sustain the already existing relationships, and either develops one's self-esteem or completely breaks it through acts such as cyberbullying.
The importance of using social media responsibly
To conclude, social media was designed for positive purposes, and its soaring popularity has greatly been due to learning and networking purposes. If used in the right way, social media eases students' transition into college and creates a stress-free environment for what one is to expect of at his or her new institution, which are the intertextual claims made by O'Keeffe, Gray and DeAndrea. It should never replace real-life interactions, but it should be used for its collection of benefits.
Works Cited
DeAndrea, David C. et al. “Serious Social Media: On the Use of Social Media for Improving Students' Adjustment to College.” The Internet and Higher Education, Edited by Nicole B. Ellison, vol. 15, no. 1, 2012, pp. 15–23., DOI: 10.1016/j.iheduc.2011.05.009.
Gray, Rebecca et al. “Examining Social Adjustment to College in the Age of Social Media: Factors Influencing Successful Transitions and Persistence.” 26 Mar. 2013.
Gwenn Schurgin O'Keeffe, Kathleen Clarke-Pearson and Council on Communications “The Impact of Social Media on Children, Adolescents, and Families” 1 Apr. 2011 DOI: 10.1542/peds.2011-0054 2011; 127;800.
