Facebook Platform Positive and Negative Impacts on the Users - Article Summary and Response Essay

Facebook is a social media site that brings people together and provides a global linkage in many different perspectives. The three authors; Farhad Manjoo, Ethan Kross et al. and Donna- vividly discuss the social aspect of Facebook and the impacts it brings about, however, facebook may have positive and negative impacts on the users and their social lives. In this article of You have no Friend,' Farhad Manjoo focuses on the social aspect relating to Facebook and how indirectly it affect the social lives of the users. Manjoo particularly addresses the issues of Facebook skeptics whereby the platform has exposed the users to connect with millions of people from the whole world without the need to meet face-to-face. Farhad views this as problematic because the aspect of having for instance 1000 friends on Facebook to whom the user does not know of is an indication that in reality, the user has no friends. The article of Facebook Use Predicts Declines in Subjective Well-Being in Young Adults written by Ethan Kross et al. concentrates on the influence of Facebook on the subjective well-being and thus conducts experiments to measure the behavioral and psychological experiences in using the Facebook platform. Kross perspectives on Facebook seem to be negative because from the experiments carried out it was realized that the more the users interacted by the use of Facebook the more they found their lives to be unsatisfactory. A Media blogger named Donna wrote an article titled on 7 Ways to Benefit from Facebook Groups that addresses on how an individual can continue being a part of Facebook groups and benefit from the people without feeling the need to leave the group. She states that engaging in a Facebook group that shares common interests and have discipline can help in connecting with people, addressing of significant issues or can also be a business platform for marketers, business people, and customers.

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Farhad Manjoo believes that Facebook has negative influence to the users as it brings out the issue of skeptics, in that, an individual may assume that they have many friends on Facebook, however, in reality, the user has no friend. To some extent, the viewpoints of Manjoo shine some light on the fact that out of the 1000 friends one may have there is a huge probability that only a third of those friends are the real life friends of the user. However, this does not necessarily mean that you have no friend because the whole perspective of friendship is to have someone who you can interact with, connect, share, and feel comfortable in talking to them. This does not necessary mean that a friend should be someone you have met face-to-face it can also be an online friend though it is of the essence to be cautious of online friends.

Ethan Kross et al. analyzed the well-being variable of behavioral science, and the scientific results prove that Facebook may have a negative influence on the users because levels of life satisfaction are declining as the user continues to use Facebook. The opinion is agreeable as it is recently seen that most people spend most of their time on Facebook uploading their daily activities, beautiful pictures, successes, their grievances, and their current status to people they have no clue of who they are. This shows that the users have developed a behavioral adaptation that finds satisfaction in the Facebook life rather than the reality. This is not the same as interacting with people on a face-to-face level because it gives the individual a chance to the personality and their lifestyles which are also important for bonding as friends. Rather than enhancing the well-being of a Facebook user, it seems that the social platform serves as a way of fulfilling the social connection needs of a person.

Donna uses her article to give insight on how individuals can use Facebook groups for their benefits especially if the group shares common interests and is disciplined. The views of Donna are totally agreeable; this is because of the fact that Facebook platform exposes individuals to a wide range of people, businesses, and products, therefore, users can join Facebook groups that satisfy their nature of needs. For instance, if the user has decided to start-up a business he or she may join the mentoring groups whereby he/she can gain insight on how to run the business with efficacy. In addition, Facebook is a platform whereby customers, marketers, and businesses, therefore, it helps in enabling the user to be updated on the current trends, innovations, and the latest news on certain aspects. However, it is crucial to note that in joining these groups it may require not sharing of private information or documents that are delicate, otherwise well usage of the platform helps an individual to network with other people.

All the authors discussed have one common viewpoint on the Facebook platform that it is of the essence to be cautious especially in sharing of personal information. Farhad Manjoo dictates that Facebook brings out the issue of Facebook skeptics. Ethan Kross et al. argues that in reality Facebook does not offer any satisfaction users may acquire endless friends on Facebook but once the users log out of the Facebook these friends do not exist in the real life of the individuals thus it can lead to developing feelings of loneliness. Donna argues on the benefits of Facebook groups by presenting ways in which a Facebook user can use the platform in a constructive and progressive manner. Therefore, Facebook has both negative and positive effects on an individual's social life; it is of important to engage in Facebook activities that enhance one's well-being and networking.