There is no doubt that Facebook has irreversibly changed the way we interact, communicate, and identify with one another in the society we live in today. We can post photos and videos, create events, join groups; essentially, we are creating virtual representations of who we are and what we identify with. Moreover, throughout the past couple years the popularity of Facebook has grown immensely, reaching over 600,000,000 users, many of which vary in age, sex, ethnicity, nationality, religion, etc. With the ascension of social media as the dominant form of communication, interaction, and networking in mainstream popular culture, it is no surprise that the roles we traditionally play in relationships have changed too. In relation to the course material we discuss in class, I found it interesting to investigate how traditional relationships have changed with the emergence of social media, and how these differences affect said relationships both in the social media and in the real world.
Facebook has become an increasingly popular tool within younger populations, and its prominence within mainstream society has enabled it to redefine traditional modes of communication, interaction, and relationships. An article featured on CNN.com by Brenna Ehrlich titled “Boy meets girl: Facebook functions in modern romance” examines a study conducted by Seventeen magazine that describes the sort of influence facebook has had on modern courtship. The study polled 10,000 guys and girls from the 16-21 age groups, maintaining that facebook “plays an important part in how amorous teens make a connection.” According to the study, 79 percent of people click “friend” within one week of meeting a person of interest, and 60 percent of people stalk their crushes profile once a day. Ten years ago, such a common social practice would be unheard of and almost inconceivable. For instance, during my adolescence and early teenage years, expressing interest in a girl may have required the courage to speak to her, the wit to make her laugh, and/or the charm to make her like you. Nowadays, the emergence and prevalence of various forms of social media such as facebook has enabled people to express such affection through a digital medium at a distance or under anonymity. The instant message or wall post has rendered obsolete the antiquated gesture of passing notes in class to the person you like or sending a written card to the person you love.
The relationship status option serves as another prominent feature which users love to use and change, and has profound implications on how we view relationships today. From “single” to “married”, users select from a range of options used to describe one’s relationship status and disclose it to the public. The article also mentions a study released by AreYouInterested, in which 21 percent of respondents said they would break up with someone via changing their status. I found this claim to resonate well with a popular attitude towards facebook relationships; that is, “It ain’t official till it’s on facebook.” The notion that having your relationship publicly disclosed on facebook confers a sense of legitimacy to said relationship is one that I’ve always found ironic, but many of my friends and I have adhered to it in the past. However, if changing one’s relationship status can serve as a legitimate way towards breaking up a relationship, as noted in one of the studies, then the notion that having your relationship disclosed on facebook makes it official has some truth to it. This is because the way we identify with ourselves and how we portray ourselves on facebook have become so aligned, that being in a relationship without publicly disclosing it can almost be seen as a discrepancy or illegitimacy of sort.
The relationship status option serves as another prominent feature which users love to use and change, and has profound implications on how we view relationships today. From “single” to “married”, users select from a range of options used to describe one’s relationship status and disclose it to the public. The article also mentions a study released by AreYouInterested, in which 21 percent of respondents said they would break up with someone via changing their status. I found this claim to resonate well with a popular attitude towards facebook relationships; that is, “It ain’t official till it’s on facebook.” The notion that having your relationship publicly disclosed on facebook confers a sense of legitimacy to said relationship is one that I’ve always found ironic, but many of my friends and I have adhered to it in the past. However, if changing one’s relationship status can serve as a legitimate way towards breaking up a relationship, as noted in one of the studies, then the notion that having your relationship disclosed on facebook makes it official has some truth to it. This is because the way we identify with ourselves and how we portray ourselves on facebook have become so aligned, that being in a relationship without publicly disclosing it can almost be seen as a discrepancy or illegitimacy of sort.
It is transparent how facebook has redefined the way we view and think about our relationships by examining how we integrate this information and interact with it through social media. Just recently, Mark Zuckerberg decided to make some subtle yet profound changes to the options one can select when choosing relationship statuses. In an effort to set a new standard for inclusivity within the social media, and to acknowledge concerns within the LGBTQ community, users can now select “in a civil union” and “domestic partnership" as options to describe their relationship status. Although this is a relatively small change that does not change the functionality of facebook, it bears profound implications on how people globally will assess and review their conception of what a relationship can or could be. By acknowledging these relationships and recognizing the differences that exist within LGBTQ communities, Facebook can even further reshape and redefine our cultural norms and social traditions. Continuing to take steps in this direction, towards inclusivity and equality, is crucial in both providing legitimacy to new definitions of social institutions such as relationships, and challenging the patriarchal systems that are often the norm and left unchallenged.
J.P. has noted a pretty remarkable paradigm shift in the way that people in our society relate to one another. I think facebook has done a lot to legitimize the online world’s connection to the romantic realm. Before facebook, online dating was seen as taboo and something only creeps and weirdos did. But facebook has normalized the idea of having an online profile and made it not only acceptable, but expected, for people to use it as a means of communication. I think this, along with the general growth of the internet, has helped to take (most of) the stigma out of starting relationships online.
ReplyDeleteBut the biggest changes facebook has made to social interactions are much more subtle than this. Only a few years ago, if two people met at a bar or random location, the relationship would have to blossom fast enough that numbers or information of some kind was exchanged so that communication could continue. Now, I am confident that anyone I meet can be tracked down easily at a later date, adding a level of complexity to the “chase.” It also allows for a whole new type of judgment based off an online profile that provides each individual godlike power over their image. It really has changed the way we present ourselves, the way we perceive others, and the way social interactions progress. I cannot imagine the amount of sociology thesis papers being written on this topic right now.