News Release| CSULA; Cal State L.A.; Los Angeles; CSU; Kaveri Subrahmanyam, social networking, Journal of Applied Development Psychology

November 18, 2008

Note to editors: To arrange an interview with the Kaveri Subrahmanyam, contact Cal State L.A.’s Public Affairs Office at 323-343-3050.                                                                                                                                                                       

College students are not going online to connect with strangers

Special issue of the Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology reveals social networking trends

Los Angeles, CA –  According to a study recently published in a Nov.-Dec. special issue of the Journal of Applied Development Psychology (JADP), popular social networking activities among college students include interacting with existing offline friends rather than seeking out new friends, new music, or finding groups to discuss specific issues.

“Mostly they seem to be using these newer social networking sites to extend and strengthen offline concerns and relationships,” said Kaveri Subrahmanyam, a psychology professor at Cal State L.A. (CSULA) and a lead author on this study about the use of online social networks by emerging adults.

Subrahmanyam and her colleagues, Stephanie M. Reich of UC Irvine, Natalia Waechter of UCLA and The Austrian Institute for Youth Research, and Guadalupe Espinoza of UCLA, report that visiting social networking sites, such as MySpace and FaceBook, is a popular online activity among emerging adults, age 18-22.

In their study, participants reported using social networking sites primarily: to keep in touch with friends they do not see often (81%); because all their friends have accounts (61%); to keep in touch with relatives and family (48%); and to make plans with friends they do not see often (36%).

A developmental psychologist, Professor Subrahmanyam is also director of the CSULA Media and Language Lab and associate director of the Children’s Digital Media Center of Los Angeles. Subrahmanyam is an expert on the effect of interactive media on children and adolescents. She is also interested in children’s cognitive and language development and in second language learning.

Subrahmanyam—who co-edited the JADP special issue with Patricia M. Greenfield, professor of psychology at UCLA and director of the Children’s Digital Media Center of Los Angeles—said, “As technology has become all-pervasive in young people’s lives, it is important for us to understand its role in development. That is, we may see some behaviors change in online contexts, see others unaltered, and find out how participating in online contexts affects young people’s development.”

The special issue is one of the first to explore behavioral development in the context of the latest ‘hot’ application, social networking sites. It reports several trends, including how emerging adults/college students are using sites for identity exploration as well as for interconnections. Use of social networking sites also seems to help students in forming social capital, particularly for those with low self-esteem.

Additionally, the special issue reveals a mismatch between parents’ estimation of online dangers and their children’s actual behavior. There is also a book review that examines parenting books published in the popular press to help parents navigate online challenges.

Along with Subrahmanyan and Greenfield, other featured authors include Adriana M. Manago, Michael B. Graham and Goldie Salimkhan, UCLA; Larry D. Rosen, Nancy A. Cheever and L. Mark Carrier, CSU Dominguez Hills; Charles Steinfield, Nicole Ellison and Cliff Lampe, Michigan State University; and Zheng Yan, University at Albany (State University of New York).

For more about Professor Subrahmanyam and her research, call (323) 343-2259 or go to /sites/default/files/faculty/ksubrah/SUBRA.HTM.   

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