Samaha 1

Darren Samaha
Emilia Grant
UWRT 1103
13 October 2014
Inquiry Project Proposal
Obviously social media, has become such a big part of peoples daily lives. It has
become one of our major forms of communication and it really makes the world seem
like a much smaller place. The intriguing aspect of social media is its widespread use
and how it impacts society. The topic which is to be explored through this inquiry project
is social media and how it can affect what other people may think of an individual. This
includes peoples perceptions of the individual and the individuals self-perception.
Social media is a very influential medium which can sway peoples perceptions and can
even impact an individual by other means. Specific inquiry questions to be explored in
this topic include; how social media affects future employment, if people can truly make
a real life friendship with a total stranger on social media, and how social media
influences one's self-perception.
What people perceptions are of one another and how a person may like or dislike
an individual makes for very interesting research. There has been news about
employers actually checking a prospective employees social media profiles as part of
judging an applicant. The fact that social media can have a negative consequence as
far as preventing employment enlarges it to a more serious scale. While there seems to
be numerous evidence of both the positive and negative sides of social media; can
social media be used as a medium to make new friends? Of course, branching out and

Samaha 2

making supposed acquaintances on a site like facebook may be a simple endeavour,

but can a user meet a stranger on Facebook and cultivate a close, real-life friendship
from an initial encounter online? Some potential sources for research on this topic and
these inquiry questions could include; Social media Generation in urban, China: a study
of social media use and addiction among adolescents by Hanyun Huang, The discourse
of Twitter and social media by Michele Zappavigna, and Human-centered social media
analytics by Yun Fu. For more sources, there are a plethora of websites and online
articles that discuss social medias impacts.
1. Social medias impacts are more serious than one may think
a. Social media is a very influential medium of communication
i.

How social media can affect future employment

ii.

Can people form a close real-life friendship with a stranger by

purely using social media?

iii.

How does social media influence an individuals self-perception?

2. How social media can affect future employment

a. Companies are base an applicants suitability for a job from social media
b. Companies have fired employees for using the internet or social media
unprofessionally
3. Can people form a real-life friendship with a stranger using social media?
a.
4. How does social media influence an individuals self-perception?