One of the highlights of digital world is the impressive growth of social media. New technology inventions contribute to the expansion of social media platforms, which allow people to actively participate in the virtual community. It is obvious that they play a big part in the modern society, as the number of social media users continue to increase rapidly. Along with the benefits that social networks bring to its users, various kinds of issues have emerged, such as health and psychological effects, interpersonal communication problems or privacy concerns. Facebook, as the fastest growing platform, has the most significant influence on users and therefore, becomes the core interest of researchers who have been looking at Facebook as a useful
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690-691). In the context of social media like Facebook, it can be referred as the sense of virtual community, which slightly differs from the original concept regarding its characteristics: ‘membership, influence and immersion’ (Koh & Kim 2003 cited in Reich 2010, p. 691). The problem is, researchers tend to look at the concept of ‘community’ in narrow focus, which revolves around users’ closely attached environments, whether in reality or virtuality. In this study, the community can be viewed in a broader perspective. In a globalized world, the cultural or geographical distance do not affect people’s sense of community. In this case, the earthquake does not solely affect Ecuador, but also have external constraints globally. Therefore, people from around the world can feel connected to the issue. In fact, the social connectivity can be inferred from people’s involvement in the event through social media. When users read the news, they do not only show their feelings towards the event but also the sympathy with the people involved in it. That is part of the social connection. Besides, the action of sharing the news and call for further practical activities, …show more content…
Scholars have been debating whether social networking sites can be considered ‘communities’ or not. This problem is summarized by Reich (2010) and Parks (2011), stating that although there are still disagreements among scholars about the exact concept of virtual community, social networking sites like Facebook do possess features that are similar to real communities. These features include the ability to enhance both ‘social norms and connections’ (Reich 2010, p. 690). This statement leads to the second consideration: how Facebook can influence users in regard to interpersonal and social relations. A number of researches have already investigated the impact of Facebook on users’ social interactions in different contexts, from virtual world to reality, such as Facebook groups, pages to real-life events. The effects can come from simple interactions that users perform everyday on Facebook, such as liking and sharing things, to activities that require participation in broader scale. For example, Oeldorf-Hirsch & Sundar (2015) examine the effects of news sharing on Facebook. Their findings suggest that sharing is one of the practices that can encourage people to participate in community events. Similarly, the different notions of the liking activity also contribute to its social effects (Eranti & Lonkila,
690-691). In the context of social media like Facebook, it can be referred as the sense of virtual community, which slightly differs from the original concept regarding its characteristics: ‘membership, influence and immersion’ (Koh & Kim 2003 cited in Reich 2010, p. 691). The problem is, researchers tend to look at the concept of ‘community’ in narrow focus, which revolves around users’ closely attached environments, whether in reality or virtuality. In this study, the community can be viewed in a broader perspective. In a globalized world, the cultural or geographical distance do not affect people’s sense of community. In this case, the earthquake does not solely affect Ecuador, but also have external constraints globally. Therefore, people from around the world can feel connected to the issue. In fact, the social connectivity can be inferred from people’s involvement in the event through social media. When users read the news, they do not only show their feelings towards the event but also the sympathy with the people involved in it. That is part of the social connection. Besides, the action of sharing the news and call for further practical activities, …show more content…
Scholars have been debating whether social networking sites can be considered ‘communities’ or not. This problem is summarized by Reich (2010) and Parks (2011), stating that although there are still disagreements among scholars about the exact concept of virtual community, social networking sites like Facebook do possess features that are similar to real communities. These features include the ability to enhance both ‘social norms and connections’ (Reich 2010, p. 690). This statement leads to the second consideration: how Facebook can influence users in regard to interpersonal and social relations. A number of researches have already investigated the impact of Facebook on users’ social interactions in different contexts, from virtual world to reality, such as Facebook groups, pages to real-life events. The effects can come from simple interactions that users perform everyday on Facebook, such as liking and sharing things, to activities that require participation in broader scale. For example, Oeldorf-Hirsch & Sundar (2015) examine the effects of news sharing on Facebook. Their findings suggest that sharing is one of the practices that can encourage people to participate in community events. Similarly, the different notions of the liking activity also contribute to its social effects (Eranti & Lonkila,