The Dangers of Facebook

In February 2004, Facebook, the world's current largest social networking site was formed (Facebook, 1). Since then, it has helped people stay informed on upcoming events, showcase their social lives, and stay updated on their friend's and family's lives. It is unsurprising then, when Laurie L. Baughman from the Pew Research Center revealed that in 2009, 73% of all adult social networking users were Facebook users (1). According to the official Facebook website, "There are currently more than 500 million active users worldwide, more than half of them spending an average of 20 minutes per day on the site" (1). Thanks to Facebook, things such as making friends and staying updated on upcoming events can be accomplished at the comfort of one's computer; yet, others claim using Facebook is a risky habit that should be kept under close watch. Although social networking sites, such as Facebook, provide users with many advantages, including faster communication, it is risky because the users run a risk of developing an addiction and there is little privacy, which can lead to hackers or even "cyber stalkers".

With time, most Facebook users become committed to the site. According to Delphine Courvoisier, Adam Joinson, and Asimina Vasalou at The University of Bath, "True commitment is signaled when users engage in three target behaviors: creative value and content, involve others, and stay active and loyal"(725). For example, posting a photograph would count as staying active and loyal, while tagging the photograph would involve others. With constant commitment, social networking such as Facebook could eventually lead to addiction. Because there are such enormous amounts of content on popular social websites, and enormous amounts of new contents are being added every day, "[Facebook] can keep a person fully occupied for the rest of a person's life" (Won Kim, 225). Facebook has many features a common user may enjoy, such as more social involvement, games, or other forms of entertainment, which makes it easy to become addicted to the site. As Paula Pile quotes, "Problems arise when users ignore family and work obligations because they find the Facebook world a more enjoyable place to spend time than the real world" (1). Users are in control of when to use their Facebook, yet many easily get addicted, and this can lead to consequences that can weaken things such as family relationships.

According to Facebook statistics in Laurie L. Baughman's article, of the 500 million active users, approximately 35 million [of those] update their status each day (2). Many of those users share picture, or connect and talk with other friends and family. Continuing in Baughman's article, Jerry Finn comments,

"Social networking sites rely on connections and communication, so they encourage you to provide