The impact of social networks on society

The impact of social media on society

Information and communication technology has changed rapidly in the last 20

years with a key development such as the emergence of social networks.

The pace of change is accelerating. For example, the development of mobile technology has played
an important role in shaping the impact of social networks. Around the world, the
Mobile devices dominate in terms of total minutes spent online. This puts the
means to connect anywhere, anytime, on any device
hands of all.

Why do people share information?

A fascinating study conducted by the Consumer Insight Group of the New York Times revealed the
motivations that the participants cited for sharing information on social networks. These
they include a desire to reveal valuable and entertaining content to others; to define themselves; to
to grow and nurture relationships and to spread the word about the brands and causes they like or
they support.

These factors have caused social networks to shift from being a useful means to stay
in touch with friends and family to be used in a way that has a real impact on the
society.

Social networks are being used in ways that shape politics, business, and culture.
global, education, careers, innovation, and more.

Impact of social media:

The effect of social media on politics

A new study by Pew Research claims that 62 percent of people receive their news
from social networks, and 18 percent do so very frequently.

Compared to other media, the influence of social networks on political campaigns has
greatly increased. Social media plays an increasingly important role in
the electoral politics.
The New York Times reports that "The election of Donald J. Trump is perhaps the best illustration of
that around the planet, social networks are fundamentally helping to reconnect people.
human society. Because social networks allow people to communicate
more freely between themselves, are surprisingly helping to create social organizations
influential among groups that were once marginalized.

The impact of social media on society

Almost a quarter of the world's population is now on Facebook. In the United States, almost
80% of all Internet users are on this platform. Because of social networks
they feed on the interactions between people, they become more powerful as
they grow.

Thanks to the Internet, people from minority groups can see that they are not alone. And when
these people meet each other through social networks, they can do things: create
memes, posts, and entire online worlds that reinforce their worldview, and then
break into the mainstream.

Without social media, social, ethical, and environmental issues would have minimal visibility.
The greater visibility of issues has shifted the balance of power from a few hands to
the masses.

The other side: social networks are slowly killing real activism and replacing it with
slacktivism

While activism on social media raises greater awareness about issues

Social issues raise questions about whether this awareness is translating into real change.

Some argue that social exchange has encouraged people to use computers and
mobile phones to express their concerns about social issues without having to
to actively get involved with campaigns in real life. Their support is limited to pressing the button
"I like" or share content.

This is a very human reaction when people have options that exempt them from the
responsibility to act. A 2013 study conducted by the Sauder School of Business
The University of British Columbia discovered that when people are presented with the option of
to 'like' a social cause, they use it to choose not to dedicate time and money to a cause
it benefits. On the other hand, when people can show their support in private, it is more
likely to show significant support in terms of making a financial contribution.

Researchers found that public backing is an action aimed at satisfying the

opinions of others, while people who give in private do so because of the cause
is aligned with its values.

The impact of social media on commerce

The rise of social media means that it is unusual to find an organization that does not reach
their customers through a social media platform or another. Companies see the importance
to use social networks to connect with customers and generate income.

Companies have realized that they can use social media to generate ideas,
estimate demand and create offers for specific products.

Many studies suggest that the implementation of social networks in the workplace can
strengthen the exchange of knowledge. The result is to improve management activities.
projects and allow the dissemination of specialized knowledge. The complete implementation of
social technologies in the workplace eliminate boundaries and can increase interaction and
help create more highly skilled and knowledgeable workers.

The other side: the low number of social 'actions' can lead to negative social tests and
destroy business credibility.

Interestingly, although the use of social media has become the norm instead of the
exception in business, some companies, after experiencing firsthand some
negative effects of social media, they have decided to go against the tide and eliminate the buttons of
social media of their websites.

An e-commerce retailer from Finland found that conversions increased by

11.9% when they removed the share buttons from their product pages.
These results highlight the double-edged nature of the impact of social media. When the
products attract many actions, they can boost sales. But when the opposite happens,
customers begin to distrust the product and the company. This is what Dr. Paul
Marsden, a psychologist and author of the "Social Commerce Manual", called it "social proof".

The effects of social media on the world of work

Social media has had a profound effect on recruitment and hiring. 19 percent
hundred of hiring managers make their hiring decisions based on the
information found on social media. According to the recruitment survey of
CareerBuilder's 2016 social media report states that 60 percent of employers use sites for
social networks to search for candidates. Professional social networks like LinkedIn are
important platforms for anyone looking to stand out in their profession. They allow
for people to create and market a personal brand.

The impact of social media on training and development

Candidates who develop skills in the latest and most advanced networking techniques
social sciences are much more employable.

A 2013 survey conducted by Pearson Learning Solutions reported a significant increase.

in the use of social networks in learning. More than half of the educators interviewed
they agreed that social exchange fosters interaction, providing a
environment that promotes learning.

Blogs, wikis, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and podcasts are now common tools for
learning in many educational institutions. Social networks have contributed to the increase of
long-distance online learning. Despite the issues of lack of privacy and some
cases of cheating among distance students, this has not deterred the platforms
social networks to be used in education.

The moral challenges of social networks

Social media has been blamed for promoting social problems such as:
Cyberbullying:

Adolescents have the need to fit in, be popular, and surpass others. This process
it was a challenge long before the advent of social networks. Add Facebook, Twitter,
Snapchat and Instagram in the mix, and suddenly, teenagers will be subjected to pressure of
growing too fast in an online world.

Michael Hamm, a researcher at the University of Alberta, conducted a study that showed the
effects of social media on bullying. 23% of teenagers report having been
attacked and 15% said they had intimidated someone on social media. Adolescents
they can misuse social media platforms to spread rumors, share
videos intended to destroy reputation and blackmail others.

Lack of privacy:

Stalking, identity theft, personal attacks, and misuse of information are some
from the threats faced by social media users. Most of the time, the
Users themselves are to blame, as they end up sharing content that shouldn't be there.
in the public eye. The confusion arises from the lack of understanding of how they actually work.
private and public elements of an online profile. Unfortunately, when it is deleted the
private content, it is usually too late and can cause problems in life
personal and professional of people.

The impact of social media on personal relationships

One of the effects of social networks is to encourage people to form and appreciate bonds.
artificial friendships over real friendships. The term 'friend', as used in social networks,
lacks the intimacy identified with conventional friendships, where people
they really know each other, want to talk to each other, have an intimate bond and frequently
interact face to face.

Conclusion

It is said that information is power. Without a means of distributing information, people do not
they can harness the power. A positive impact of social media is the distribution of
information in today's world. Platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and others have made
It is possible to access the information with just one click of a button.
The research conducted by parse.ly shows that the lifespan of a published story
on the web it is 2.6 days, compared to 3.2 days when a story is shared on the
social networks. That is a 23% difference, which is significant considering that thousands
Millions of people use the Internet daily.

This means that the longer information circulates, the more discussion it will generate and
the impact of social media will be greater.

While the world would be a much slower place without social media, it has caused so much harm.
as well. However, the positive impact of social media is astronomical and surpasses with
you grow the evils associated with exchange.

At the end of the day, sharing is getting people to see and respond to the content. While the
content remains relevant and the need for information still exists, it is always worth it
that any organization using social media continues to publish.

If you need help in creating and managing your social media, do not hesitate to contact
we.