Social Network Sites and e-Learning Adoption

The younger generation’s widespread use of online social network sites has raised concerns and debates about social network sites’ influence on this generation’s civic engagement, whether these sites undermine or promote prosocial behaviors. This study empirically examines how millennials’ social network site usage relates to volunteering, using the 2013 data of the Minnesota Adolescent Community Cohort Study. The findings reveal a positive association between a moderate level of Facebook use and volunteering, although heavy users are not more likely to volunteer than nonusers. This bell-shaped relationship between Facebook use and volunteering contrasts with the direct correlation between participation in off-line associational activities and volunteering. Overall, the findings suggest that it is natural to get mixed messages about social network sites’ impacts on civic engagement, and these platforms can be useful tools for getting the word out and recruiting episodic volunteers.

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Do smartphones and social network sites become more important when experiencing stress? Results from longitudinal data

Computers in Human Behavior ◽

10.1016/j.chb.2020.106339 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 109 ◽

pp. 106339 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Lara N. Wolfers ◽

Ruth Festl ◽

Sonja Utz

Keyword(s):

Social Network ◽

Longitudinal Data ◽

Social Network Sites

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Digital detox: An effective solution in the smartphone era? A systematic literature review

Mobile Media & Communication ◽

10.1177/20501579211028647 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 205015792110286

Author(s):

Theda Radtke ◽

Theresa Apel ◽

Konstantin Schenkel ◽

Jan Keller ◽

Eike von Lindern

Keyword(s):

Social Network ◽

Literature Review ◽

Social Relationships ◽

Instant Messaging ◽

Social Network Sites ◽

Well Being ◽

Self Control ◽

Smartphone Use ◽

Health And Well Being ◽

Digital Detox

Smartphone use, e.g., on social network sites or instant messaging, can impair well-being and is related to clinical phenomena, like depression. Digital detox interventions have been suggested as a solution to reduce negative impacts from smartphone use on outcomes like well-being or social relationships. Digital detox is defined as timeouts from using electronic devices (e.g., smartphones), either completely or for specific subsets of smartphone use. However, until now, it has been unclear whether digital detox interventions are effective at promoting a healthy way of life in the digital era. This systematic literature review aimed to answer the question of whether digital detox interventions are effective at improving outcomes like health and well-being, social relationships, self-control or performance. Systematic searches of seven databases were carried out according to PRISMA guidelines, and intervention studies were extracted that examined timeouts from smartphone use and/or smartphone-related use of social network sites and instant messaging. The review yielded k = 21 extracted studies (total N = 3,625 participants). The studies included interventions in the field, from which 12 were identified as randomized controlled trials. The results showed that the effects from digital detox interventions varied across studies on health and well-being, social relationships, self-control, or performance. For example, some studies found positive intervention effects, whereas others found no effect or even negative consequences for well-being. Reasons for these mixed findings are discussed. Research is needed to examine mechanisms of change to derive implications for the development of successful digital detox interventions.

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