The merging of social networking and the real world : The merging of social networking and the real world Michael Semcken
A Short Overview : A Short Overview We will use a general definition of ethics as:
A branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and bad, noble and ignoble, right and wrong, justice, and virtue.
We will be relating these ideas to the subject of online social networking which we will be defining as:
Social networking sites are online communities that enable people with shared interests to communicate through a variety of networks.(Donna)
Main Points of Interest : Main Points of Interest Social Networking May Effect Many Aspects of One’s Life Such as:
Personal Relationships
Perception of Appropriate Behavior
School Work
Professional Standing
Quick Overview : Quick Overview It is estimated that 68% of the worlds population has visited a Social networking site!
Facebook has the largest group of users estimating 400 million users as of February of 2010 and has just added 140 million NEW users in April of 2010.
Personal Relationships : Personal Relationships Social networking sites have limited this generations ability to effectively communicate, much in the same way as text messaging did
This new form of communication has made interaction between people seem very distant and often times even inhuman, leading people to act in ways that they would never do in person. It is much easier to type an unflattering comment, or address a sensitive issues with the strike of a keyboard rather than using the spoken word.
i.e. “Jane Smith was so drunk last night it was disgusting! She was all over 20 different guys and her boyfriend was nowhere in sight…What a tramp!” or “I think we should see other people”
Another effect of this abundant use of social networking site is the vast loads of intimate knowledge of a person, or what seems like intimate knowledge.
People post all sorts of things online in reference to themselves and their thoughts. It is impossible to tell whether a person truly stands behind these statements or information posted or it is a mere façade. However people will continue to think that they ‘know’ a person based on this information. Is it right to make a judgment about a person based on information you obtained about them online?
Perception of Appropriate Behavior : Perception of Appropriate Behavior It is amazing the statements that people will post online, knowing all too well that everybody they know, and many people they don’t can read it.
Just five years ago it would be thought that a person was insane to call their entire family and tell them that they skipped class, dropped two classes, and sold there books in order to go to Happy Hour, in which they have an open invitation to everybody that will listen on any given website.
When this is all that anybody ever see’s posted online people begin to believe that this is normal behavior and that the majority of people are participating if various unproductive behavior.
Social networking can be looked at as another world. If everybody in your world wore two different shoes with makeup on the back or their hands, and shaved their eye lashes every morning then you would undoubtedly accept this as the norm and follow in their example. It’s much like the old saying “Monkey see, Monkey do!”
School Work : School Work The evolution of social networking sites has changed the way in which students around the country are approaching academics due to a number of tools available at their fingertips such as: ratemyprofessor.com, sharetermpapers.com, cramster.com and other various information swapping websites.
These social networking sites have now connected millions of people around the world and made countless resources available to anybody at the click of a button. The question is that simply because a tool is available does that mean that one should use it?
It is very tempting for students to take classes that rely on take home test, and/or online classes because they know that they can link in with networks of literally millions of people to help them with the course.
There are social networking sites with students from colleges from around the world in whom have meticulously created online databases for thousands of online classes including all test, old term papers, presentations, and a number of other tools that could be utilized for an ‘easy A’
It is very tempting to go to one of these websites, sign up for a given class and do nothing more than basically copying and pasting your way to 1-5 credits and an A. Is this wrong? Yes. Can you be caught? Not likely. Should a student do it? There in lies the personal battle.
Slide 8 :
Professional Life : Professional Life This is by far the most publicized issues of social networking over the past couple years.
This is in regards to employers utilizing social networks in order to gather information about current or perspective employees in order to help make employment decisions.
Employers are utilizing what is extra information, personal information, to help make presumptions about candidates and employees in order to assess if they are a suitable match for the company
The question is if this is ethical, using what is amounted to information obtained outside of the business setting to make business related decisions. Is this a violation of separation of work and personal life? Are these companies doing what amounts to looking through your windows to see what you do late at night?
Slide 10 :
Things to Think About : Things to Think About When people post things online, are they to be held responsible for that content as a direct reflection of who they are or what they stand for.
Should we make presumptions about people based off of content that we discover online, or is online postings a mere form of expression, not meant to be taken seriously
Does the availability of a tool litterally at your fingertips make it unreasonably difficult to resist? Is it wrong to utilize these tools when the main goal is to be superior to your competition. (Competitive applications).
Is it ethical for employers to utilize personal information that they obtain via the internet in consideration for employment/professional growth?
Should an employer have the right to read or diary’s and utilize that information the same way? Or should people simply post with caution? Which party needs to watch their actions?
Eventually us as a society are going to have to make an acceptance that the online world is a direct part of everyday life and that no boundaries or separations exist. Once something is placed online, it becomes part of you and your character. The boundaries of privacy are voluntarily being handed over by hundreds of millions of people in the world and being taken advantage of.
Sources : Sources http://econsultancy.com/blog/5324-20+-mind-blowing-social-media-statistics-revisited
http://donnasealeconsulting.typepad.com/workplacehumanrights/2009/01/using-social-networking-sites-in-the-hiring-process-smart-move-or-human-rights-trap.html
www.web-strategist.com/.../2010/.../a-collection-of-social-network-stats-for-2010/ -