CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

The internet plays a fundamental role in organizations and societies. The basic fact

justifies the information revolution that has been taking place across the globe in recent

times. The term internet according to Cawkell in Ogedegbe (2006 p.152) is a large

computer network formed out of some thousands of interconnected networks and it

supports a whole range of services such as electronic file transfer protocol data base

access and many others. It is therefore not surprising the success story behind the advent

of the internet. It is also known as a network that links computers all over the world by

satellite and telephone connecting users with service networks such as Email and the

world wide web. Today the internet has linked thousands of nations and enterprises across

the world. Hence the world which appears physically large has been made small by the

internet and justifies the reference to the world as a global village.

The internet gave rise to the birth of social networking sites which according to

Okenwa (2008 p. 15) are 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. What makes social network sites unique is not that they allow individuals to

meet strangers but rather that they enable users to articulate and make visible their social

networks. This can result in connections between individuals that would not otherwise be made

but that is often not the goal and these meetings are frequently between "existing ties" who share

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some offline connection (Hawthorn 2005). On many of the large social networking sites

participants are not necessarily "networking" or looking to meet new people; instead they are

primarily communicating with people who are already a part of their extended social network.

Social networking began in 1978 with the Bulletin Board System (or BBS.) The BBS was

hosted on personal computers requiring that users dial in through the modem of the host

computer exchanging information over phone lines with other users. This was the first system

that allowed users to sign in and interact with each other; it was quite slow since only one user

could be logged in at a time. Later in the year the very first copies of web browsers were

distributed using the bulletin board Usenet. Usenet was created by Jim Ellis and Tom Truscott

and it allowed users to post news articles or posts which were referred to as ―news‖. The

difference between Usenet and other BBS and forums was that it didn‘t have a dedicated

administrator or central server. There are modern forums that use the same idea as Usenet today

including Yahoo Groups and Google Groups.

The first version of instant messaging came about in 1988 with Internet Relay Chat

(IRC). IRC was Unix-based limiting access for most people. It was used for link and file

sharing and generally keeping in touch with one another. Geocities was among the first social

networking sites on the internet launching its website in 1994. Its intent was to allow users to

create their own websites dividing them into groups based on the website‘s content. In 1995

TheGlobe.com was launched offering users the ability to interact with people who held the same

interests and publish their own content. Two years later in 1997 AOL Instant Messenger and

SixDegrees.com were launched. This was the year instant messaging became popular and it was

the first time internet users were able to create a profile and be-friend each other.

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Friendster created in 2002 was the pioneer of social networking. In its first three months

the social networking website acquired 3 million users amounting to 1 in 126 internet users

being members at the time. Friendster served as the launching point for the widely popular

MySpace which cloned Friendster and launched after just 10 days of coding. In the following

years other social networking websites like Classmates.com LinkedIn and Tribe.net started to

come up including what was to be the most popular social networking website in internet

history Facebook.com was launched in 2004 with the intent to connect U.S. college students

starting with Harvard College. In its first month over half of the 19500 students signed up. After

gaining popularity Facebook opened its registration to non-college students and in 2008

Facebook surpassed MySpace as the leading social networking website. Social networking has

come a long way since 1978 and we will all witness its evolution for years to come forever

changing the way people connect with one another.

While social network sites have implemented a wide variety of technical features their

backbone consists of visible profiles that display an articulated list of Friends who are also users

of the system. Profiles are unique pages where one can "type oneself into being" Sunder (2003

p. 3). After joining a social network site an individual is asked to fill out forms containing a

series of questions. The profile is generated using the answers to these questions which typically

include descriptors such as age location interests and an "about me" section. Most sites also

encourage users to upload a profile photo. Some sites allow users to enhance their profiles by

adding multimedia content or modifying their profile's look and feel. Others such as Facebook

allow users to add modules ("Applications") that enhance their profile.

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After joining a social network site users are asked to identify others in the system with

which they have a relationship. Most social network sites require bi-directional confirmation for

Friendship but some do not. These one-directional ties are sometimes labelled as "Fans" or

"Followers" but many sites call these Friends as well. The term "Friends" can be misleading

because the connection does not necessarily mean friendship in the everyday vernacular sense

and the reasons people connect are varied (Boyd 2006).

These sites also provide a mechanism for users to leave messages on their Friends'

profiles. This feature typically involves leaving "comments" although sites employ various

labels for this feature. In addition social networks often have a private messaging feature similar

to webmail. While both private messages and comments are popular on most of the major

networking sites they are not universally available.

Beyond profiles Friends comments and private messaging network sites vary greatly in

their features and user base. Some have photo-sharing or video-sharing capabilities; others have

built-in blogging and instant messaging technology. There are mobile-specific social network

sites (e.g. Dodgeball) but some web-based sites also support limited mobile interactions (e.g.

Facebook MySpace and Cyworld). Many networking sites target people from specific

geographical regions or linguistic groups although this does not always determine the site's

consistency. Orkut for example was launched in the United States with an English-only

interface but Portuguese-speaking Brazilians quickly became the dominant user group

(Kopytoff 2004). Some sites are designed with specific ethnic religious sexual orientation

political or other identity-driven categories in mind. There are even sites for dogs (Dogster) and

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cats (Catster) although their owners must manage their profiles. This then brings to mind the

fact that everyone needs to interact both humans and animals alike.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

The introduction of information technology in Nigeria is a welcome development.

The use of internet for educational purposes is also of immense benefit especially in the

area of being globally relevant and current. However when it becomes a substitute for

good means of social interactions and academic study among young people it should

give cause for concern.

Students nowadays spend the better part of their time in school on information

technology devices such as palmtops iPods and blackberry. On close enquiry one

usually finds out that they are social networking with friends and rarely getting

information on their various school courses. Often times information sought is subject to

the use of technological media especially for pleasure to while away time and to

interrelate with friends and pals on Facebook twitter e.t.c. The question this research seeks

to answer is; how has social networking influenced students with regards to their academic

performance?

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1.3 Objectives of the Study

1. To determine the influence of social networking on the academic performance of

Caritas University Students.

2. To ascertain the amount of time students spend on social networking sites.

3. To determine the impact of social networking on the grade points of students of

Caritas University.

1.4 Research Questions.

1. How has social networking influenced the academic performance of Caritas

University students?

2. How much time do students of Caritas University spend on social networking

sites?

3. How has social networking impacted on the grade points of Caritas University

students?

1.5 Scope of the Study

A particular focus is given to the academic behaviour of emerging university

students. An overview was provided of the recent transformation of institutions into

providers of information Centres. This also seems to have taken a negative impact on

reading habits and social interaction as they would rather listen to people talk on YouTube

and chat with friends on Facebook Twitter e.t.c. so they do not feel the need to read any

longer. The study is centred on the students of Caritas University. This research seeks to show

how social networking influences the academic performance of Caritas University students.

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1.6 Significance of the Study

This study will help students to discover how much social networking influences their

academic performance; it will also enlighten academic personnel on both the good and bad

aspects of social networking to ensure academic growth for their students. The study will benefit

students in their usage of these networking sites and also institutions to create a more conducive

environment for learning.

1.7 Operational Definition of Terms

Internet - is a collection of computers and computer networks located all over the world all

of which share information by agreed upon protocols.

Social Networking Service - this is an online site that focuses on facilitating the

building of social networks or social relations among people who share activities

interests background thus allowing them share ideas events among themselves.

Academic Performance - refers to how students deal with their studies and how they cope with

or accomplish different tasks given to them by their teachers.

Student – a person who studies at a school college or university.

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