Ghanbari 1!

Bella Ghanbari

McColl

English 4, period 7

14 October 2019

The Digital Age

PART 1: INTRODUCTION

In a time and age where information is a press of a button away, society would not recognize a

world without social media; especially teens. Social media, an internet-based system of

communication, has become a viral sensation used by over 200 million people world wide. In

2003 when Friendster, a site providing people to invite and encourage members to join making a

network of online friends, was created it sparked a new wave in the social media realm and

became the historical point of social media's beginning (“Social Media”3). From that point on

social media has become a podium for all people to communicate, share photos and videos,

instant message, share world/political views and various other options. Which has led to a

platform where influencers like Kylie Jenner, Barack Obama and Donald Trump can use it to,

“[strengthen] people’s social ties, [foster] political awareness, and even [spark] democratic

revolutions” (“Social Media”2). Social media has evolved into a world wide sensation providing

knowledge, insights, warnings and personal perspectives across the world. In an online

community it constitutes of only impersonal meetings, which has affected, “people’s desire to

engage in sober debate[s] and reflection[s]” (“Social Media”1). Because social media has

notably changed the world of communication it has created various issues and concerns like:

does social media reflect behavior or does it affect moral behavior? Society becomes a product of
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their specific environment, so the affect of social media on our specific environment changes the

behavior and habits of our society everyday. In an ever-changing society it will never stay

constant and social media only allows this diverse and divergent universe to keep moving

forward.

PART 11: REAL LIFE ANALYSIS

A. JSerra Seniors’ Social Media Behavior

The JSerra class of 2020 partook in an anonymous group survey, “JSerra Seniors: Social Media,”

consisting of twenty-three questions regarding to social media and its behavior. JSerra is a

private Catholic high school in Southern Orange County California. Out of 194 seniors, 56 are

female and 58 are male which provide an almost equal split between the two genders. As a class

more than 60% of voters thought, “social media does equal amounts of good and harm,” but the

question, “do you think social media platforms affect your level of contentment” left JSerra all

across the boards; leaving an unclear answer as to: does social media

influence your degree of satisfaction and fulfillment (“JSerra Seniors:”Question 22,7). Fifty

percent of Jserra also agreed that only sometimes, “individuals online presences match their real-

life personas,” which raises the question will social media always be superficial (Question 5).

The question, "when commenting on others' posts my friend group tends to be," rooted a gender-

specific answer which lead to a thirty percent differentiation (Question 14). The split showed that

males mostly believed their friend group’s comments are occasionally snarky, but mostly kind

and females mostly believed that their friend group’s comments are typically kind. This proves a

common phenomena that posting positive comments can be a, “genuine attempt to boost
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[someone’s] self esteem,” which ultimately ended up being more common in female friend

groups (“Social Media”10).

B. Self-Analysis of Social Media Behavior

Many teens rely on social media as a break from real-life interactions, which has affected the

way society today functions. Although social media has become a progressive way of

communicating and networking, it has transposed into a distraction. This distraction has

damaged personal interactions, authenticity and self worth, but it has also opened a new door to

spreading positivity and awareness. I personally believe social media infiltrates equal amounts of

good and harm because what we put into social media is usually what comes out of it (“JSerra

Seniors:”Question 22). Because the question, “do you think social media platforms affect your

level of contentment,” never came to a complete agreement, it was fascinating to know that my

answer, “a little bit,” was the second most common chosen option (Question 7). This question

establishes the divergent beliefs surrounding the inquiry does social media have an affect on our

behavior. Because our levels of contentment have been proven globally to lead to our actions,

social media is therefore going to have an affect on our behavior. When I looked over my sins

and virtue sheet, I noticed that the majority of my posts fell under the category “lust” (“Sins and

Virtues: Lust”). This correlates to the question do, “individuals online presences match their real-

life personas,” because lust is just a way to represent your self as physically attractive (“JSerra

Seniors:”Question 5). That is why for the question, “when commenting on others' posts my

friend group tends to be,” I chose mostly kind, which has made me feel more inclined to post

because of the positive reactions I receive. Many people use social media as a way to fish for

attention or gain personal fulfillment through other people’s likes and comments, which has lead
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to a loss in self confidence and self assurance. The similarities between my Sins and Virtue chart

and the JSerra Senior Survey prove a direct correlation to how my specific posts affect me and

the community who is following me.

PART 111: PERSONAL POSITIVITY STUDY

The Social Media Positivity Study was held on the program Instagram. Instagram, a photo and

video sharing social network, is used by over a billion users world wide. The study was held over

a week, where students posted photos according to given positive topics. At the end of the project

I had a total of 83 followers and a composite of 268 likes including all posts. After posting all

seven positive posts, I noticed Good Deeds was my most popular preforming post (“PPS: Good

Deeds”). With forty-one likes and thirty-four comments my post regarding Good Deeds, a post

pertaining to service, sparked the most interest in my followers (“PPS: Good Deeds”). The

entirety of the comments were positive compliments and sweet remarks that had a 2:34 ratio

from guy to girl. This data does not shock me, because I knew my social media demographic is

primarily girls. Also, my friend group tends to comment mostly positive things on any of my

posts. My lowest preforming post was Strength, with forty likes and nine comments (“PPS:

Strength”). After coming to a clear verdict as to why the post preformed so poorly, I had

narrowed it down to the time of post and lack of relevance. Because I posted so late in the night,

I ended up missing the optimal time that most of my followers would have been active. Knowing

that they are students, the time I post a photo will affect the performance and statistics of a post.

Another interesting finding was my post and about Knowledge and it’s results (“PPS:

Knowledge”). I found this post insightful because it led me to the conclusion that people feel

inspired or grateful after seeing a well constructed saying or quote. Knowing this, it has helped
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me understand that what words you put out on social media does affect the feelings and

behaviors of the people reading it; which makes me want to post more insightful or wise memes.

PART IV: CONCLUSION

The 2020 Social Media Positivity Project has allowed me to see social media through a new set

of unbiased eyes. I learned that posting positive content on social media creates a forum to uplift

and spread happiness throughout an electronic world. Although I was not surprised of my

findings, I was satisfied that my understandings of social media prevailed through my personal

project. This has made a significant impact on my outlook on the power of influencers and how

they use social media to shed light on personal opinions or things they favor. I also have a new

understanding of how the world should use social media properly to promote a culture of

communal positivity rather than solidify outdated stereotypes.

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Works Cited

Ghanbari, Bella. “Personal Positivity Study.” bbellaghanbari. Instagram. October 2019.

Ghanbari, Bella. “Sins and Virtue Chart.” Graphic. Social Media Project. October 2019.

McColl, Courtney. “JSerra Social Media Survey.” Survey. surveymonkey.com. September 2019.

"Social Media: Does Social Media Have a Positive Impact on the World?" Issues &

Controversies, Infobase.

5 Aug. 2016. https://icof.infobaselearning.com/recordurl.aspx?ID=1789. Accessed 26 Sept. 2019.