Social Media

Social Media

Serena Matheson, Memorial University of Newfoundland

Definitions and background

Social media is understood as a set of technologies by which people can create, collaborate, and network and share content (Woodley & Silvestri, 2014). Social media technologies, also known as Web 2.0, are made up of many different types of communication technologies such as blogs, wikis, online social networking, virtual worlds, social bookmarking, wall posting, photo and video sharing, etc. (Friedman & Friedman, 2013; Poellhuber, & Anderson, 2011; Woodley & Meredith, 2012). The first social networking site was introduced to the public in 1997 and has grown exponentially over the years (Ahn, 2011). What was once a one-way communication tool is now multi-tiered system of communication between peers (DeAndrea, Ellison, LaRose, Steinfield, Fiore, 2012). Over the last 6 years, Facebook and Twitter have exploded in popularity demonstrating the growth in social media usage (Evans, 2014).

Young people today use social media as their main method of communication (Casey, 2013). “Most computer users – and adolescents in particular – engage in a broad range of computerized activities, including coursework for school, watching videos on Youtube, or playing first-person shooter video games” (Appel, 2012, p. 1340). Social networking sites offer an insightful opportunity to research and learn how young people interact with others in their online communities. (Ahn, 2011).