Internet Relationships

PROJECT PROPOSAL

Main Topic: Effects of internet technology on modern online and offline relationships

 Q: what kind of relationships? -acquaintances, family, friends, teachers, lovers

 Q: what age group are we going to observe? -teenagers, college students, etc.

Main Problem: How do face-to-face encounters compare, differ from or relate to online encounters? What are the implications of these "real societies" and/or "cyber societies" on (age group to observe)'s overall relationships?

 Q: is it good or bad for communication? Does it alienate or integrate these people with others?

Goal: to observe relationships that have online and offline dimensions (ex. OFW's, gamers, lovers, friends, orgs), as well as plain online and plain offline dimensions.

Research Methods:

 to look at message archives of online communities, ask people about the topics on online communities in real life, and have a conversation that "continues" from the online realm to the offline realm

 surveys about computer use and how it makes people feel about their relationships

 further interviews with people who have plain online, plain offline and online and offline relationships

 personally build plain online, plain offline, and online and offline relationships with other people

Hypothesis: Internet technology supplements people's overall sense of community and integration if face-to-face interactions are balanced along with online relationships.

(Possible) Review of Related Literature (Taken from Carnegie Mellon University)

Longitudinal Effects of Internet Uses on Depressive Affect: A Social Resources Approach

Internet Paradox Revisited

The Internet and Social Participation: Contrasting Cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis

http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol10/issue1/shklovski_kraut.html#s9

Internet Evolution and Social Impact

Background of the Study

In the Philippines the Internet is growing. Although there are almost 100 Internet Service Providers in the Philippines, most of them have connections through backbones located in the United States. Internet dial-up connection charges are approximately 2 dollars hourly (or 33 dollars for up to 60 hours monthly). This fee is approximately 80% higher than similar charges in the United States. Since GNP per capita in the Philippines is only 12% of that in the United States, it is clear that access to the e-world is currently limited to the wealthier citizens and companies. In 2000 Internet users were approximately 2,000,000. In 2003 this number had increased to 3,500,000 Internet surfers.

According to the research group BSBC Hook UAI, there were 1,925,649 Internet users in 2004 in Metro Manila belonging to the A, B and C classes, ages ranging from 13 to 30 years old, as compared to 1,885,465 in 2002, indicating a 21.3-percent increase. Today, with an estimated population count of 91,077,287, and the latest data of Internet users as many as 14,000,000, the user growth from 2000 (with about 2,000,000 Internet users) to 2007 has been a fairly high figure of 600%.

High accessibility and convenience in usage has been the driving force of the spread of Internet usage. The Internet cafй has been the growth driver of online gaming with a 38-percent share from January to June 2004, with Metro Manila registering the highest share with 41 percent, followed by Central Luzon with 17 percent. Since the Philippines has a low personal computer (PC) penetration rate estimated at less than 10 percent of the total population, the Internet cafй has provided access to online gaming and the Web to many Filipinos. Another is the rising popularity of Wifi hotspots, (wireless internet hubs) that are most of the times free. Convenience in using the Internet as a means of communication through chat, messengers and email; of information acquirement through search engines and many more also provide as a boost to the widespread use of the Internet.

What else do the youth (college students and teenagers) do online?They download or play download movies, TV shows,shop or get product information, visit chat rooms ,Work on their own Web site, or blog. Activities engaged in online include downloading and playing music, doing homework, getting information, shopping and blogging. What can be seen is that youth engage in traditionally offline activities, such as listening to music and chatting with friends, in online spaces as well.

Online activities are linked to daily lives and gender affects which online activities are engaged in. The most noted difference between girls and boys can be seen in the area of gaming. Younger teens play games more often than older teens and boys play online games more frequently than girls.

But a rising trend is the emergence of social networking sites, where more and more teens are discovering new and hi-tech ways to meet new people and socialize with them. Relationships can now be fostered using the Internet social networking sites and since regulation of Internet use is difficult, the number of relationships a person can have online,offline and with various people are not regulated as well.

Statement of the Problem

The main problem the group will discuss is the difference or relation of face to face encounters to online encounters and the implications of these "real societies" and/or "cyber societies" on a college student's overall relationships.

In today's modern world, there is now a new association called the online relationship that manifests itself in the form of chat rooms, forums and groups that are easily accessible today. In these new mediums, an individual is able to find other people who share the same hobbies and interests and are able to connect and talk to these people freely. These chat rooms, forums and groups are the foundations of today's "cyber societies".

With the growth of cyber societies and its members, our