Users of Social Networking Sites (SNSs) like Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, or Twitter face two problems 1) their online social friendships and activities are scattered across SNSs. It is difficult for them to keep track of all their friends and the information about their friends online social activities. 2) they are often overwhelmed by the huge amount of social data (friends updates and other activities). To solve these two problems, this research proposes an approach, named SocConnect. Soc- Connect allows users to create personalized social and semantic contexts for their social data. Users can blend their friends across different social networking sites and group them in different ways. They can also rate friends and/or their activities as favourite, neutral or disliked. SocConnect also can recommend unread friend updates to the user based on user previous ratings on activi- ties and friends, using machine learning techniques. The results from one pilot studies show that users like SocConnects functionalities are needed and liked by the users. An evaluation of the effectiveness of several machine learning algorithms demonstrated that , and machine learning can be usefully applied in predicting the interest level of users in their social network activities, thus helping them deal with the network overload.

There are currently over 900 million Facebook users worldwide (and counting). With increased use of social networking comes new concerns for personal privacy and control of social networking information. More and more, Facebook activity trickles its way into offline contexts, perhaps none more so than the employment context. A new trend in the hiring process is social networking background checks, where some employers go so far as to request a candidate’s Facebook password. Not only this, but the frequency of Facebook activity resulting in employment law disputes is increasing, and has even been found to constitute sufficient grounds for discipline and termination. This thesis examines the current privacy protection given to social networking information in the context of the employment relationship, highlights problems with the current legal landscape in this regard, and offers an emerging theory, New Virtualism, as a conceptual basis for the regulation of this issue going forward.

Thesis advisor: Usha Tummala-Narra / Women receive many contradictory messages about what their bodies should look like and how they should behave. These messages necessarily impact how women are socialized to use social media and how they engage with online platforms. Little attention has been paid to the impact of these mixed messages on women’s self-concept and social engagement online, or to the mental health and social consequences of these interactions. The present study, guided by Objectification Theory (Fredrickson & Roberts, 1997) and Relational Cultural Theory (Miller, 1976), intended to gain a deeper understanding of how emerging adult women understand the messages they receive about their bodies and what they should be used for and how these messages influence their relational behaviors online. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 women (ages 19-25), focusing on messages concerning expectations of women’s bodies and sexuality, performance of body and sexuality in social media spaces, social media activism, and social interactions online. Conventional content analysis was used to examine the interviews. Interview data revealed multiple themes, composing four broad domains: (1) expectations of women; (2) social media curation; (3) mental health and social effects of social media use; and (4) activism and advocacy. Notions about how women wanted to perform their identities online were shaped by several factors, including aspirational goals for self-love and body acceptance, an interest in portraying themselves authentically and in the best possible light, and a desire to be part of a movement of social change. The study underscores the impact of social media in individual functioning and wellbeing and reveals deep-seated conflict that women face in integrating messages about who they should be with performance of their own identities. This study highlights the need for situationally responsive clinical practice, intervention, and future research. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2022. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Counseling, Developmental and Educational Psychology.

Yes / This study explores the evolution of student-led social networking groups initiated and sustained by a cohort of undergraduate students over a 3-year time frame. The study contributes to this growing area of research by exploring the impact of peer-led, peer-supported informal learning through social media networks. Social capital is a useful lens through which to understand the findings, and particularly in interpreting descriptions of the evolution of the group over time. The findings suggest that students build bridging social capital to support the transition into higher education, form relationships and learn collaboratively through a large cohort-based Facebook group. Over time, this form of social capital and the use of the Facebook group declines due to a lack of perceived reciprocity and an increased perception of competitiveness amongst peers. However, there is accompanied by a subsequent rise in the building of bonding social capital between closer peer relationships facilitated through the use of various WhatsApp groups. The findings have implications for considering how social networking might support the student journey towards more nuanced, more personalised collaborative learning and a move towards more self-directed learning.

The Internet has evolved since its establishment, embedding itself in daily life and paving the way for social networking. The ability to connect and communicate has become seamless, allowing instantaneous access to the Internet and social networking sites. Social networking has become a global phenomenon, transcending boundaries and transforming mobile technology. It has gained an enormous following and become an indispensable technology. Social networking has expanded into a multi-faceted medium of communication, with an extensive online presence. The capacity to share information and knowledge is essential in building intellectual capital in professional and academic environments. This research project aims to explore the application of a social networking learning tool in a primary school within South Africa. This study explores social networking technologies and the opportunities they present in facilitating and supporting learning. Today’s youth are following technological advancements closely. At present, primary school and high school learners access a vast range of social networking sites, and the focus of this study is to understand if social networking sites can be applied to benefit learning. This study elected to explore the social networking as a learning tool in a primary school within South Africa. This research followed a mixed methods approach and its findings indicate that social networking has the potential to be applied positively as a learning tool by school learners, teachers and academic heads. This study revealed that learners and academics acknowledge the growth of social networking and recognise its potential benefits. This dissertation provides a foundation for schools and learning institutions in South Africa, Africa and the globe, to incorporate social networking into their learning framework in order to build and enhance learning. / Mini Dissertation (MBA)--Regenesys Business School, 2017. / This mini dissertation is donated by Regenesys Business School / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / MBA / Unrestricted

People make a range of everyday decisions about how and whether to share content with different people, across different platforms and services, during a variety of tasks. These sharing decisions can encompass complex preferences and a variety of access-control dimensions. In this thesis I examine potential methods for improving sharing mechanisms by better understanding the everyday online sharing environment and evaluating a potential sharing tool. I first present two studies that explore how current sharing mechanisms may fall short on social networking sites, leading to suboptimal outcomes such as regret or self censorship. I discuss the implications of these suboptimal outcomes for the design of behavioral nudging tools and the potential for improving the design of selective-sharing mechanisms. I then draw on a third study to explore the broader “ecosystem” of available channels created by the services and platforms people move between and combine to share content in everyday contexts. I examine the role of selective-sharing features in the broader audience-driven and task-driven dynamics that drive sharing decisions in this environment. I discuss the implications of channel choice and dynamics for the design of selective-sharing mechanisms. Using insights from current shortfalls and ecosystem-level dynamics I then present a fourth study examining the potential for adding topic-driven sharing mechanisms to Facebook. I use design mockups and a lab-based interview to explore participants’ hypothetical use cases for such mechanisms. I find that these mechanisms could potentially be useful in a variety of situations, but successful implementation would require accounting for privacy requirements and users’ sharing strategies.

Agritourism is increasingly prevalent in Canadian society and affords individuals the opportunity to experience and learn about agriculture. Social networking sites can allow agritourism providers and consumers to engage outside of the agritourism context. This research used qualitative and quantitative content analysis and semi-structured interviews to understand how agritourism providers and consumers interact on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram; why agritourism providers are using social networking sites in general; and if social networking sites can be used to facilitate free-choice learning. Customer Relationship Management and the Contextual Model of Learning were used as frameworks to better understand these interactions. The results and findings are discussed and confirm that agritourism providers believe educational opportunities can be fostered on social networking sites, but are primarily using Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to promote connections between consumers and agritourism organizations. / October 2016

This bachelor thesis studies the impact of social networking on customer loyalty. Customer loyalty is defined as a commitment to re-buy a specific product or service in the future, despite external influences. There are several influencers of customer loyalty that must be taken care of, e.g. core offering, demographics, elasticity level or share of wallet. The objective of this thesis is to investigate the factors that influence customer loyalty through social networking on Facebook. In order to achieve that, the author has reviewed academic literature on the topic of customer loyalty, as well as on social networking and the ways in which Facebook is used as a marketing tool.

Abstract Due to the advanced development of information technology, society groups generated from internet have been in shear progress. Not only can this phenomenon establish a bridge of emotional connection, it can also provide health information and medical knowledge. Moreover, it certainly can be influential on health policy conducted by governments. Among the present medical society groups, PatientsLikeMe.com (PLM) developed an innovative business model. It built up a platform which allows patients share their own medical history. Through sharing medical history, the patients are able to discover someone else who has similar symptoms and then help to improve clinical outcome. This website may collect patients¡¦ information under patients¡¦ permission. After being clearly filed and analyzed, the data may be sold to medical companies or co-operated institutions for improving clinical therapy. This model has been evaluated by an American consulting institution on business model -- ¡§Board of Innovation¡¨ --as the ¡§Top 10 shocking Business Model of 2010¡¨.Additionally, this model is recognized as a specific research model that may permanently change the methodology of medical research.(J Gospel Net December 2nd,2010) With a view to evaluating the function of websites on helping breast cancer patients to overcome depression and helplessness on diseases, in this study, we would like to introduce the concept of PLM internet society groups. After two interviews on breast cancer patients, we found that the patients are desperately looking for information while the diagnosis is firstly confirmed. These patients are thereby paying deep sympathy to the ones who are also in the same shoes. Under this condition, the patients are willing to share their experience anonymously. At the same time, they only want to solve the problems that already come to the door rather than prepare in advance. Consequently, all the information is collected from the surroundings and lack of proved quality. Therefore, it is important to avoid the fear brought by the overloaded information. From this research, we concluded that (1) during treatment, the breast cancer patients can receive professional assistance and sharing experience from PLM or similar function/ service on websites. (2)Through internet technology, it is possible to provide a platform that surpasses the limitation of both time and space and allows patients to share their personal experience and medical history. (3) PLM system opens a window that allows physicians or nurses to answer patient¡¦s question in one-to-one manner. It is also possible for patients to share their knowledge and some tips that may not be mentioned by medical professionals. However, we also notice that most patients still have problems on using internet society groups because of time limitation, incapability of typing and being unfamiliar on internet skills etc. This research concludes that internet society groups are unlikely to fulfill the requirement of breast cancer patients. Key Word¡GPatientsLikeMe.com (PLM), Case Manager, Social Networking.

According to Nicole B. Ellison and Danah M. Boyd in their article on “Social network sites: Definition, History, and Scholarship”, they defined Social Networking Sites as “Web-based services that allow individuals to (1) Construct a public or semi-public profile within a bounded system, (2) Articulate a list of other users with whom they share a connection, and (3) View and traverse their list of connections and those made by others within the system”( 2007). In other words, Social Networking Sites (SNSs) are websites that are designed to simplify communication between users who share similar activities, attitudes and interests. Today the growth and role of social networking sites has become an issue not only for the users themselves but also for scholars and industrial researchers. My aim in this research will be to explore Social Networking Sites in general. The concept of Social Networking Sites is very broad; therefore my main study will be dealing primarily with how privacy and restrictions plays a role in identity management with reference to Facebook.