Principles of Social Theory-Shiloh Kent: Short Review: Social Networks--Facebook (article analysis-film analysis)

Social Networks & Employment

Social networks have been the new black for internet communication. Not only used for social interaction but also been used for employment engines. Not until recently, internet has been used for daily routines such as, reading the news, communication with friends, family, co-workers, bosses, searching information on any topic, store data base, and much more. One problem that has arisen from the use of social networks is that applicants and potential employees are often scoped out by the employer to see if they are valid candidates. Many of the times people place information about their personal life on these social networks which then allows the public to see all of their information.

Rob Croll is Department Chair for the Internet Marketing Bachelor’s degree program at Full Sail University, and the Course Director for Search Engine Optimization there. He had analyzed the issue of employment rates based on the access to ‘pre-interview’ potential candidates without officially interviewing them. Instead of calling and interviewing these applicants,Facebook, Twitter, and LinkdIn have been commonly used to determine if an interview is worth having based on the individuals personal life and how they spend their time. “Career Builder says that 80% of potential employers will do an online search using a candidate’s name to find information. And what they’re finding apparently isn’t always positive; 43% of employers say they have rejected a candidate based on something they found online” (Croll, 2011).

Moreover, sometimes employees with go home after a shift and post on their Facebook wall something negative that relates to their day at work, either disrespecting the company, or the customers. Management and almost anyone else can see these posts resulting in disciplinary action or even termination of employment. Instead of Facebook being a positive social invention, it has become to be used for other purposes which has enabled humans to discipline themselves on how they act, how they speak, and the people they associate themselves with. Facebook not only has had a positive impact on society, but it has known to become a number one pathway to cyber bullying and personal invasion.

But there were cases in which candidates' social-media profiles helped them land their job. “More than one third of employers that use social media to screen candidates made the decision based on the employee's profile” (Lee, 2011). For example, if a person has picture with very intelligent, well-known individuals, and are constantly posting interesting and relevant information the relates to the particular job, the employer may feel more comfortable and have a better feeling of bringing in this particular individual for an interview.

These social networks have been used by not only young adults, but children, and the elderly. These social networks that have been dominated amongst the human population are being used in the daily routine by the new technology of convenience by having access to it; through cellular devices, wireless laptops, and through the television. Internet has been drastically advancing and making access more convenient.

An interesting film that is related to the topic of Facebook is Social Networks. It is the replication of the invention of Facebook which now is being used by over millions of people all around the world.