EmergingSocialSoftware

story about new features in tweetdeck

interesting commentary on changes in blogging and twitter

another reason I love twitter--I hate those unwanted pings that interrupt me when I'm working

Is There Social Capital in a Social Network Site?: Facebook Use and College Students' Life Satisfaction, Trust, and Participation1 Sebastián Valenzuela 1 Namsu Park 1 Kerk F. Kee 1 1 University of Texas at Austin 1 Earlier versions of this study were presented at the 2008 International Symposium on Online Journalism and the 2008 APSA Preconference on Political Communication. For intellectual and financial support on this research, we thank Sharon Strover. Helpful comments at various stages were provided by Jeff Gulati and Talia Stroud. Corresponding author: Sebastián Valenzuela [sebastianvalenzuela@mail.utexas.edu] ABSTRACT This study examines if Facebook, one of the most popular social network sites among college students in the U.S., is related to attitudes and behaviors that enhance individuals' social capital. Using data from a random web survey of college students across Texas (n = 2,603), we find positive relationships between intensity of Facebook use and students' life satisfaction, social trust, civic engagement, and political participation. While these findings should ease the concerns of those who fear that Facebook has mostly negative effects on young adults, the positive and significant associations between Facebook variables and social capital were small, suggesting that online social networks are not the most effective solution for youth disengagement from civic duty and democracy.

Options for backing up social media from Bob Rankin. Twitter, Facebook, Gmail, MySpace

(Sage has free access to this journal for a couple of months after August 1st if you register.) `IM me': Instant messaging as relational maintenance and everyday communication Artemio Ramirez, Jr Arizona State University, artemio.ramirezjr.1@asu.edu Kathy Broneck Pima Community College Few studies to date have examined the use of Internet applications in enacting `everyday' routine relational maintenance and even fewer assess how such tools complement more traditional forms of communication to sustain involvements. This exploratory study examines the role of one such tool, instant messaging (IM), in relational maintenance. Participants (N = 402) reported their general use of IM (Stage 1) and subsequently conducted and reported on a specific interaction occurring either through IM or face to face (Stage 2). Among IM users, significant gender and the types of relationships differences emerged in `every communication.' Findings also indicate how IM is being utilized in conjunction with other communication channels. New research opportunities for examining relational maintenance processes employing IM are advanced. Key Words: computer-mediated communication * instant messaging * Internet * relational maintenance * routine interaction Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, Vol. 26, No. 2-3, 291-314 (2009) DOI: 10.1177/0265407509106719

`IM me': Instant messaging as relational maintenance and everyday communication Artemio Ramirez, Jr Arizona State University, artemio.ramirezjr.1@asu.edu Kathy Broneck Pima Community College Few studies to date have examined the use of Internet applications in enacting `everyday' routine relational maintenance and even fewer assess how such tools complement more traditional forms of communication to sustain involvements. This exploratory study examines the role of one such tool, instant messaging (IM), in relational maintenance. Participants (N = 402) reported their general use of IM (Stage 1) and subsequently conducted and reported on a specific interaction occurring either through IM or face to face (Stage 2). Among IM users, significant gender and the types of relationships differences emerged in `every communication.' Findings also indicate how IM is being utilized in conjunction with other communication channels. New research opportunities for examining relational maintenance processes employing IM are advanced. Key Words: computer-mediated communication * instant messaging * Internet * relational maintenance * routine interaction Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, Vol. 26, No. 2-3, 291-314 (2009) DOI: 10.1177/0265407509106719