Acknowledgement

I would like to thank my teachers Dr. Ganga Pathak and Nabin Bajracharya (Psychology Department, Goldengate International College) for the encouragement and guidance in my research.

I also would like to express the much thanks to the entire friends and students who helped me out in filling the questionnaires and providing me with important information which helped me a lot while preparing this research paper.

This study wouldn’t be successful without the help of respondents, our subject teacher, psychology department, friends and all those who were directly and indirectly involved while undertaking it. So, I am very much thankful to everyone whose continuous support, guidance and sharing helped me to successfully accomplish this research work within the given timeframe.

ALso, this is the minu research conducted on my subject of curiosity. I would love to do the extended research on the same topic in the near future.

Ms. Kripa Sigdel

Symbol no.4530017

Gold

Table of Contents:

Abstract………………………………………………………………….1

CHAPTER 1: Introduction:………………………………………………………… 2­4

1.1 Background Self­Esteem Facebook

1.2 Statement of the Problem 1.3 Hypothesis 1.4 Objective of the study 1.5 Rationale Of Study 1.6 Limitation of the Study

CHAPTER 2: Literature Review……………………………………………………… 5

CHAPTER 3: Methodology……………………………………………………………. 6­7

3.1 Sample design

3.2 Sample Size

3.3 Study Area

3.4 Sampling

3.5 Variables

3.6 Data Collection Tools

3.7 Data Collection Methods.

3.8 Ethical Considerations

CHAPTER 4: Results and Interpretations …………………………………………… 8­11

4.1 Findings and Data Analysis

CHAPTER 5: Discussion and Conclusion……………………………………………… 12

Recommendations: ………………………………………………………………………. 12

References:…………………………………………………………………………………13

Appendices………………………………………………………………………………….14

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the consequences of adolescents self esteem in the use of facebook. It’s always understood that people with low self esteem are likely not to have larger friends circle, they are more introvert and more inclined to their personal world rather than involving in many social activities. Since, facebook, a Social Networking site, has played a larger role to outlet their frustration and express their emotions. Because of self­protective orientation, people with low self­esteem may find Facebook especially appealing. They can think carefully about what to say and can avoid the ‘in­the­moment’ awkwardness of face to face interaction. The sample of the study has comprised of 40 individuals who are active facebook users (18 boys and 22 girls) from different areas of Kathamandu. (Age group varies from 16 years to 20 years). A ‘Rosenberg's Self­Esteem Scale’ was used as a data collection method. Results show that people with low self esteem likely to spend many hours in facebook rather than people with higher self esteem. Whatever may be the cause of low self esteem but they are more likely to spend more hours in facebook and more inclined to avoid face­to­face situation more often. These findings suggests that in today’s world people with low self esteem found a way to project themselves and be attached with the outer world with the social networking site, Facebook.

CHAPTER 1: Introduction

1.1 Background

Self Esteem: Self­esteem should be viewed as a continuum, and can be high, medium or low, and is often quantified as a number in empirical research.

When considering self­esteem it is important to note that both high and low levels can be emotionally and socially harmful for the individual. Indeed it is thought an optimum level of self­esteem lies in the middle of the continuum. Individuals operating within this range are thought to be more socially dominant within relationships.

Low self­esteem has been shown to be correlated with a number of negative outcomes, such as depression (Silverstone and Salsali, 2003). Rosenberg and Owen (2001) offer the following description of low self­esteem people based on empirical research. People with low self­esteem are more troubled by failure and tend to exaggerate events as being negative. For example, they often interpret non critical comments as critical. They are more likely to experience social anxiety and low levels of interpersonal confidence. This in turn makes social interaction with others difficult as they feel awkward, shy, conspicuous, and unable to adequately express themselves when interacting with others. Furthermore, low self­esteem individuals tend to be pessimistic towards people and groups within society. And since they are likely to spend many hours aloof. Here, with the increase of social networking site, Facebook, people with low self esteem found a good way to avoid the face­to­face situation and are likely to spend many hours in comparison with the people with higher self esteem. Facebook provides a variety of services, such as user’s own unique “space” as well as enabling them to share photos and videos, maintain blogs and encourage group

interaction which people with low self esteem likely to avoid in the face to face interaction. People with low self­esteem may feel safe making personal disclosures on Facebook and since for this reason, they are likely to spend many hours in facebook rather than the people with high self esteem. Facebook: Since its inception in February of 2004, the social networking Web site Facebook has revolutionized interpersonal communication and relationship maintenance. With more than 50% of its 500 million users logging in on any given day Facebook appears to be fulfilling its mission “to give people the power to share and make the world more open and connected”. Popular media outlets have latched on to the idea that Facebook may serve as a “social lubricant” (“Facebook a Big Hit,”2010, para. 18) that helps people who struggle with relationships—the shy, the lonely, and people with low self­esteem—connect with others in a comfortable environment (e.g., Dailey, 2009; Rosenwald, 2011). Some therapists have even speculated about the utility of Facebook for such groups. For example, Jonathan Dalton noted that “Shy people have difficulty finding topics to talk about. . . Facebook gives you a starting point” (as quoted in Rosenwald, 2011, para. 15). It is also speculated that people who have difficulty connecting socially due to self­esteem issues helps to interact through facebook (Dailey. 2007). It seems possible that Facebook could help people with low self­esteem lead more fulfilling social lives by providing an opportunity for self­disclosure, which is considered crucial to the development of intimacy (Reis & Shaver, 1988).

1.2 Statement of the Problem:

Self­esteem has become the most prominent issue of today’s human beings. This is why it has gathered the interest of so many researchers. We can hear or see many suicidal attempts due to the people with low self esteem and higher achievement due to high­self esteem in them.

Since, due to the technological era, people with low self esteem found a way to project themselves in the group or in the interaction. People who keep on avoiding face to face awkwardness is more likely to get involved in interaction these days due to social networking site, Facebook. They tend to update status, posts photos, videos, chat, interact which they feel awkward to do in the real situation.

Since, this research is done to realize whether the people with low self esteem likely to spend more time in facebook rather than in real situation or not.

1.3 Hypothesis:

“Adolescents with Low self esteem are likely to spend longer hours in Facebook, a Social networking site, than adolescents with high self­esteem”

1.4 Objective of the Study:

To measure either people with higher self­esteem or low self esteem likely to use facebook more.

1.5 Rationale of the study:

This study tries to explore the interest of adolescents in facebook, the social networking site. It also tries to explain why the facebook is so much popular in today’s world mostly with the people of fluctuating self esteem and to those who tries to avoid face­to­face situation more often. This research can be a good source for the students who try to study further on the social networking site and their impact in adolescents.

1.6 Limitation of the study:

This study basically focuses on the people who spend many hours in facebook but ignores the rest of people who uses the facebook for some definite purpose like study or social interaction. Also, due to lack of resources, this study could be only conducted within a small group of people while there are 5 million facebook users in today’s world, so this cannot be so useful in other part of the world. Also, due to quantitative research, this study many not provide depth information about related topic. Somewhere, it may fail in providing the vast information and the perception of people in comparison to the qualitative study.

CHAPTER 2:

Literature Review

Since its inception in February of 2004, the social networking Web site Facebook has revolutionized interpersonal communication and relationship maintenance. With more than 50% of its 500 million users logging in on any given day Facebook appears to be fulfilling its mission “to give people the power to share and make the world more open and connected”. Popular media outlets have latched on to the idea that Facebook may serve as a “social lubricant” (“Facebook a Big Hit,”2010, para. 18) that helps people who struggle with relationships—the shy, the lonely, and people with low self­esteem—connect with others in a comfortable environment (e.g., Dailey, 2009; Rosenwald, 2011). Some therapists have even speculated about the utility of Facebook for such groups. For example, Jonathan Dalton noted that “Shy people have difficulty finding topics to talk about, Facebook gives you a starting point” (as quoted in Rosenwald, 2011, para. 15). It is also speculated that people who have difficulty connecting socially due to self­esteem issues helps to interact through facebook (Dailey. 2007). It seems possible that Facebook could help people with low self­esteem lead more fulfilling social lives by providing an opportunity for self­disclosure, which is considered crucial to the development of intimacy (Reis & Shaver, 1988).

Yet! Very few studies investigate the antecedents of social networking site adoption. Industry surveys indicate that people join and partake in social networking Web sites like Facebook for a variety of reasons, such as to stay in touch with friends, make plans with friends, make new friends, or flirt with someone (Lenhart and Madden 2007).

Other reasons may include feelings of affiliation and belonging, need for information, goal achievement, self­identity, values, and notions of accepted behavior (Ridings and Gefen 2004). These factors all relate to an individual user's need for cognition, need to belong, and level of collective self­esteem. Moreover, the successful adoption of technologies depends on the perceived ease of use (Davis, Bagozzi, and Warshaw 1989), often conceptualized as Internet self­efficacy for Internet technologies (Daugherty, Eastin, and Gangadharbatla 2005; Eastin and LaRose 2000).

Therefore, existing literature cites mostly on self­esteem­as influences on adoptions of technologies such as Facebook. However, no study examines the effect of these factors on college students' attitudes toward facebook and their willingness to join such sites.

CHAPTER 3: Methodology

This chapter covers the description of the sample, sampling, study area and population, variables, data collection tools, data collection methods and the procedure of study. The present study is carried out to measure whether the people with low self esteem likely to spend many hours in facebook or not. Using mean, median, mode, pie charts and diagrams.

3.1 Sample Design:

Table 3.1: Distribution of respondent on the basis of level and sex (n=40)

Age Group (years old) 16 to 21

Sex Male Female 18 22

Total 40

The table 3.1, shows the distribution of respondent on the basis of Sex. The total number of sample taken was 40 where, 16 were male participants and 22 were female participants who were chosen from the age group 16 years to 21 years.

3.2 Sample Size:

The sample of study is 40 students where, 16 male and 22 femlae respondents were selected from 16 to 21 years of age group for the study.

3.3 Study Area:

The area of study was the 19 adolescents who live in GPYC –Nepal Hostel,, Bansbari and 21 other adolescents where were present there in the “Leadership Seminar” organized by GPYC­Nepal on Youths Day 2013.

3.4 Sampling:

As a sampling method, conveninent sampling procedure was used. The students fulfilling following criteria were selected as sample for the study:

Adolescents who have their own facebook id and are active user of it. Adolescents who are of both gender i.e. Male and Female

3.5 Variables:

Independent Variable: Self­esteem

Dependent Variable: Hours spend in using facebook

Extraneous Variable: The interest of Adolescents, The assignments they have to do in facebook, (Still the extraneous variable were tired to controlled as much as possible while conducting this mini­research)

3.6 Data Collection tool:

As a data collection tool, Rosenberg's Self­Esteem Scale, was used which was developed for this study with the standard format. It is a ten­item Likert­type­scale with items answered on a four­point scale — from strongly agree to strongly disagree. Five of the items have positively worded statements and five have negatively worded ones. The scale measures state self­esteem by asking the respondents to reflect on their current feelings. This scale was provided to the 40 adolescents present in the GPYC seminar hall in the break time aiming to test their self esteem ani co­relating it to their use of Facebook. It helped to explore their time spent in facebook and their self­esteem level.

[Rosenberg’s Self Esteem Scale which was used in this research is attached at the Chapter 4]

3.7 Data Collection Method:

The data was collected by using Rosenberg’s Self Esteem Scale. The adolescents involving in various sectors like students, teachers, workers and speakers were requested to answer the question provided on a four­point scale.

The subjects were given Rosenberg’s Self Esteem Scale. And before responding to the questions, they were provided with necessary information to till up the scale. They were asked to respond freely and sincerely and were assured their response will be kept confidential. Also, to avoid extraneous variable, they were requested to be unbiased and discard the time they spent in facebook for the meaning full purpose and only scale when they use to facebook to avoid face­to­face interaction. After they completed answering the questions, they were thanked for their valuable time, co­operation and information they had provided.

3.8 Ethical Considerations:

During the study, the ethical norms were followed throughout the process:

Approval sheet from the head of department of GGIC was taken Verbal consent was taken from all participating respondents.

All data collected for the study was utilized only for the purpose of research and confidentiality

CHAPTER 4: Result and Interpretation

The chapter includes the presentation and interpretation of the data of the study. The Rosenberg’s Self Esteem Scale, used in the study is also presented in this chapter.

Following is the Rosenberg’s Self Esteem Scale provided to the subject while performing this mini­research:

Form that is provided to the 40 subjects:

Fill in the firm first:

Name:………………..

Age:………………….

Address:…………….

Phone. No. (provide, only if u r comfortable):………………….

Facebook Id (provide, only if u r comfortable):……………….

Occupation:………………..

Tentative Hours spent in facebook in a day:………………………..

Now, fill the circle, which is the most appropriate for you.

STATEMENT

Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly

Disagree

1. I feel that I am a person of worth, at least on an equal plane with others.

2. I feel that I have a number of good qualities..

3. All in all, I am inclined to feel that I ama failure.

4. I am able to do things as well as mostother people.

5. I feel I do not have much to be proudof.

6. I take a positive attitude toward myself.

7. On the whole, I am satisfied with myself.

8. I wish I could have more respect for myself.

9. I certainly feel useless at times.

10. At times I think I am no good at all.

Your score on the Rosenberg self­esteem scale is: ……..

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

When the above table was filled, the scores were calculated in the following format.

(This format is not shown in the actual scare which was provided to the subject to avoid any biasness)

Scores are calculated as follows: For items 1, 2, 4, 6, and 7:

Strongly agree = 3 Agree = 2 Disagree = 1 Strongly disagree = 0

For items 3, 5, 8, 9, and 10 (which are reversed in valence):

Strongly agree = 0 Agree = 1 Disagree = 2 Strongly disagree = 3

The scale ranges from 0­30. Scores between 15 and 25 are within normal range; scores below 15 suggest low self­esteem.

4.1 FINDINGS AND DATA ANALYSIS

Table: The given table shows the data collected from 40 subjects:

(Due to confidentiality names of the subjects are not disclosed)

Subjects (Male)

Scores (Self­esteem scale)

Hours Spent in facebook

Subjects (Female)

Scores (Self­ Esteem scale)

Hours Spent in facebook

1) 13 4 1) 17 4 2.) 15 4 2) 18 3 3.) 17 3 3) 19 5 4.) 20 2 4) 20 4 5.) 22 2 5) 23 3 6.) 12 6 6) 23 3 7.) 14 5 7) 29 2 8) 13 5 8) 28 2 9) 25 2 9) 28 1 10) 28 2 10) 9 5 11) 11 7 11) 12 4 12) 15 5 12) 17 3 13) 9 7 13) 13 5 14) 28 1 14) 12 4 15) 30 2 15) 17 4 16) 29 1 16) 13 2 17) 18 3 17) 12 5 18) 20 5 18) 11 6 19) 21 2 20) 22 3

21) 23 2

22) 22 3

To understand the relation between self­esteem and the hours spent in facebook, we need to find the co­relation between them.

Since, Firstly,

Mean (of self esteem) = sum of scores of self­esteem test of all subjects/ Total no. of subjects

=748/40

=18.7

Mean (of hours spent in fb) = sum of hours spent in facebook by all subjects/ Total no. of subjects

=141/40

=3.5

Hence, to find the co­relation coefficient, Using the formula,

Correlation(r) = NΣXY ­ (ΣX)(ΣY) / Sqrt([NΣX2 ­ (ΣX)2][NΣY2 ­ (ΣY)2]),

We get, r = ­0.82

Hence, Self –esteem and hours spent in facebook are “Negatively Co­related”

This can be interpreted as “Subject with low self­esteem is likely to spend many hours in facebook than subject with high self­esteem”…

Now, graphically co­relation graph of this result looks like:

Hours spent

In facebook…

(time)

Self­esteem­­

Hence, in this study, the result can be interpreted as, when an adolescent has low self­esteem, he/she is likely to spend longer hours in facebook. He/she likely to avoid face to face interaction and situation and be more involved in social networking site, facebook. This way he/she can maintain their public interaction without being in the situation of awkwardness. Since, this data verifies the researcher attempt which explains “Adolescents with low self­esteem likely to spend longer hours in facebook”.

CHAPTER 5: Discussion and Conclusion

This study mainly aims at providing basis to the hypothesis which says ‘adolescents who have low self esteem are likely spend longer hours in facebook”. And after studying on 40 adolescents it’s found that, people who find difficult to interact with others and who find themselves with lower self esteem were likely to spend many hours in facebook.

From its inception in February of 2004, the social networking Web site Facebook has revolutionized interpersonal communication and relationship maintenance. With more than 50% of its 500 million users logging in on any given day. Facebook appears to be fulfilling its mission “to give people the power to share and make the world more open and connected” It is also speculated that shy people with low self esteem who have difficulty finding topics to talk about in public, here Facebook gives a good way to start the interaction for them.

Our research also interprets that “people who are likely be be more introvert, who do not enjoy being in the public due to awkwardness and who avoid face to face interaction are more interested in facebook and likely to spend more hours there. It seems possible that Facebook could help people with low self­esteem lead more fulfilling social lives by providing an opportunity for self­disclosure, which is considered crucial to the development of intimacy.

In conclusion, the study on 40 adolescents of aged group 16 to 20 years proved the hypothesis which says “Adolescents with low self­esteem are likely to spend longer hours in Facebook”. Here, people who have lower self­esteem who don’t want to participate more in the public functions and who feel awkward in face to face situation due to lack of self esteem enjoys more in facebook and feels good with the updates, posts he/she does there. This way they are likely to spend longer hours there fulfilling their necessity of social interaction.

RECOMMENDATION

As a researcher, it was a great opportunity to study in the subject of interest. I am more motivated to study other aspects of social interaction and encouraged to conduct this mini research of ‘relation of self­esteem and facebook’ into full­fledged research soon.

Yet, it would be better if we students were allowed more time for the research. This way we could conduct our study with the larger number of subjects. Also, after doing this research, I recommend other friends to do more research and study on social behavior. This will help to understand the man kind and human behavior and its different aspects in depth.

Also, at last, after the study is done, as a psychology student, I felt those subjects who show low self esteem in the study must be motivated to change their attitude towards life. This way the study can help some young mind to be more self confident and motivated.

References:

www.simplypsychology.org/self­esteem.html

www. psychology.about.com/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self­esteem

Coopersmith; S (1967), The Antecedents of Self­esteem, Freeman

Article on: Facebook me: ‘Collective self­esteem, Need to belong and interet as the igeneration attitudes towards social networking sites’ By Harsha Ganadharbtla

C.E. Kao (1984), "The Efficient Assessment of Need for Cognition," Journal of Personality Assessment, 48, 306­307.

Morgan C.T (2005) A brief Introduction to psychology: New Delhi. Tata McGraw Hill.

APPENDICES:

Form that is provided to the 40 subjects: Rosenberg’s Self­Esteem Test.

Fill in the firm first:

Name:………………..Age:………………….

Address:…………….

Phone. No. (provide, only if u r comfortable):………………….

Facebook Id (provide, only if u r comfortable):……………….

Occupation:………………..

Tentative Hours spent in facebook in a day:………………………..

Now, fill the circle, which is the most appropriate for you.

STATEMENT

Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly

Disagree

1. I feel that I am a person of worth, at least on an equal plane with others.

2. I feel that I have a number of good qualities..

3. All in all, I am inclined to feel that I ama failure.

4. I am able to do things as well as mostother people.

5. I feel I do not have much to be proudof.

6. I take a positive attitude toward myself.

7. On the whole, I am satisfied with myself.

8. I wish I could have more respect for myself.

9. I certainly feel useless at times.

10. At times I think I am no good at all.

Thank You!