LYCEUM OF THE PHILIPPINES UNIVERSITY – LAGUNA

Km.54, Makiling, Calamba City, Laguna

The Impact of Social Networking Sites to the Academic Performance of the College Students of

Lyceum of the Philippines – Laguna

Presented To:

Mr. Jonathan Roque

Faculty of

College of Arts and Sciences

In Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Subject

Communication Arts II (ENGN02A)

Presented by:

Averion, Mary Elaine M.

Abad, Joan Z.

Judalena, Kevin John M

(IT 2-2)

SEPTEMBER 2010
 CHAPTER 1

PROBLEM AND ITS SETTING

INTRODUCTION

The emergence of new technologies and the fast-paced technological

advancements marked the beginning of the 21st century. Different gadgets and tools to

suffice the wants and to help ease the difficulties encountered by man in his daily

existence have been invented and are constantly developed. Unlike in the past, these

changes are not confined to a certain nation or country only, but rather, to the whole

human population. Effects of these technologies in the fields of medicine, education,

transportation, communication, economics, and warfare, to name a few, are globally

observable. Information superhighway is undoubtedly one of the most developed fields.

Extensive researches have been done to improve this indispensable field.

The development of what was known to mankind today as Internet is one of the

most successful attempts to improve the communication framework. The history of

Internet could be traced back to 1960’s. Before the Internet was created, the U.S. military

had developed and deployed communications networks, including a network known as

ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network). Uses of the networks were

restricted to military personnel and the researchers who developed the technology. Many

people regard the ARPANET as the precursor of the Internet (Microsoft Encarta 2008).
 From the 1970s until the late 1980s the Internet was a U.S. government-funded

communication and research tool restricted almost exclusively to academic and military

uses. By 1995, the Internet was privatized and commercial use was permitted. This move

coincided with the growth in popularity of the World Wide Web (WWW), which was

developed by British physicist and computer scientist Timothy Berners-Lee. The Web

replaced file transfer as the application used for most Internet traffic. The Internet is the

highway system over which Web traffic and traffic from other applications move. The

Web consists of programs running on many computers that allow a user to find and

display multimedia documents Many analysts attribute the explosion in use and

popularity of the Internet to the visual nature of Web documents. By the end of 2000,

Web traffic dominated the Internet—more than 80 percent of all traffic on the Internet

came from the Web (Microsoft Encarta 2008).

Locke, C, Searls,D., and Weinberge, D. (2000) described Internet as primarily a

place in which all participants are audience to each other and entertainment is not

packaged. Rather, it is natural. Unlike the lockstep conformity imposed by television,

advertising, and corporate propaganda, Internet has given new authority and free rein to

play. Many of those drawn into this world find themselves exploring a freedom never

before imagined: to indulge their curiosity, to debate, to disagree, to laugh at themselves,

to compare visions, to learn, to create new art, new knowledge.

As the statement “No man is an island” implies, people are social beings by

nature. We cannot isolate ourselves from the rest of the world. We constantly seek for a

means to communicate with what surrounds us, most especially our fellow human beings.

Through the endless possibilities of the evolving information superhighway, we find

ourselves enmesh in the web of modernization. People find ways to utilize the available

resources, and to develop it further to meet the need to interact.

Our world has evolved many ways of making decisions simply because we have

many ways of being socially together. Through electronic mails, we send messages to

other people. Instant messaging applications such as Yahoo Messenger, Google Talk, and

Skype were also developed to allow users to communicate with someone near or far via

chat. Thus, social networking sites (SNS) became influential in the 21st century. In casual

conversations, instead of asking the basic information about a person such as home

address or complete name, we would commonly hear people asking for the person’s SNS

email address, or rather, Yahoo Messenger ID. At the most basic level, an online social

network is an Internet community where individuals interact, often through profiles that

represent their selves and their networks of connections to others.

In the definition of Boyd & Ellison (2007).Social network sites are web-based

services that allow individuals to (1) construct a public or semi-public profile within a

bounded system, (2) articulate a list of other users with whom they share a connection,

and (3) view and traverse their list of connections and those made by others within the

system.

Truly, only some years after the advent of the Internet, online social networks

have met public and commercial success. SixDegrees.com experience in 1997 to 2000

was considered one of the first manifestations of SNS that people use today.

SixDegrees.com allowed users to create profiles, list their Friends and, beginning in

1998, surf the Friends lists. Each of these features existed in some form before
SixDegrees, of course. Profiles existed on most major dating sites and many community

sites. AIM and ICQ buddy lists supported lists of Friends which those Friends were not

visible to others. Classmates.com allowed people to affiliate with their high school or

college and surf the network for others who were also affiliated, but users could not

create profiles or list Friends until years later. SixDegrees was the first to merge these

features. After its short-term success, hundreds of networks have branched online due to

its considerable audience (Boyd & Ellison, 2007).

Unlike in the past when only a small portion of Philippine’s population could

afford to buy gadgets such as computers, many companies nowadays offer hundreds of

affordable products and services to support the advancement of technologies for the

masses. There were thousands of computer shops or internet cafes spawning nationwide,

particularly near schools and public places.

Since the advent of social networking sites (SNS) here in the Philippines, SNS

usage has been widely accepted by a number of Filipino populations. It has been a part of

the Filipinos’ daily routine. The acceptance of SNS in the Philippines could be attributed

to the friendliness of the Filipino and the modernization of technological tools widely

available for usage here.

Based on a study released by Universal McCann entitled “Power to the People -

Wave3″ on 2008, social networking sites (SNS) such as Friendster, Facebook, and

Multiply are increasingly popular in the Philippines. The study declared the Philippines

as “the social networking capital of the world,” with 83 percent of Filipinos surveyed are

members of a social network. They are also regarded as the top photo uploaders and web
video viewers, while they are second when it comes to the number of blog readers and

video uploaders.

There was also a report released by comScore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR) regarding

the social networking activity in the Asia-Pacific region (excluding China) based on data

from its World Metrix service on April 2010. Approximately 51% percent of the total

online population of ages 15 and up at home and work, excluding visitations from public

computers such as Internet cafes or access from mobile phones or PDAs in the Asia-

Pacific region visited a social networking site in February 2010, reaching a total of 240.3

million visitors (comScore, 2010).

Facebook.com ranked as the top social network across the majority of individual

markets in the region, while competing brands commanded the top position in certain

markets, including Orkut in India, Mixi.jp in Japan, CyWorld in South Korea and

Wretch.cc in Taiwan. In February 2010, Internet users in the Asia-Pacific region

averaged 2.5 hours on social networking sites during the month and visited the category

an average of 15 times (comScore, 2010).

Across markets, the Philippines showed the highest penetration of social

networking usage with more than 90 percent of its entire Web population visiting a social

networking site during the month, followed by Australia (89.6 percent penetration) and

Indonesia (88.6 percent penetration). Social networkers in the Philippines also showed

the highest level of engagement on social networking sites averaging 5.5 hours per visitor

in February, with visitors frequenting the social networking category an average of 26

times during the month (comScore, 2010).

RATIONALE

Like almost all technologies, there are also drawbacks in using SNS, especially to

the population who are mostly involved with these sites, the youth, particularly the

students. Academic performance was one of the key factors to the success of an

individual’s educational attainment. Since the students are mostly involved with these

online interactions, it is important to determine if these sites are beneficial or detrimental

to the class performance of a student.

1.3 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

In this study, the researchers intend to answer the following questions:

1. What are the profiles of the respondents in terms of their:

a. age

b. academic year level or occupation

c. gender

2. What are the mostly used social networking sites (SNS) in LPU – Laguna?

3. Why does an individual register to social networking sites?

4. How many hours in average does a student spend in social networking sites?
 5. How can exposure to SNS in terms of the average hours affect the individual

academic performance?

6. What are the academic benefits of SNS to the students?

7. What are the negative impacts of SNS to the academic performance of students?

8. Are the students aware of these negative impacts?

9. What are the existing resolutions done in LPU – Laguna to control the SNS

usage?

10. Considering the negative impacts, what could be possibly done to resolve SNS

issues?

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The academic performance of students could either be affected or unaffected by

these advancements of social networking sites directly or indirectly. Present academic

performance is necessary to determine in order to address the issues of the gaps between

learning and socializing, and the status of the country’s future professional in terms of

their educational careers. Through this research study, the researchers intend to guide the

SNS users, particularly the students, in the responsible usage of these sites. Moreover,

school faculties such as guidance counselors, instructors, and school network

administrators would be enlightened of the impacts of these SNS and how these sites

could be helpful and somehow detrimental to the academic welfare of the students.

Guidance counselors would be aware of the nature of SNS and how these sites could
affect the behaviors and attitudes of students in the school premises. Instructors, through

this study, could be given insight of the capabilities of SNS for more effective

communication between students and instructors. For school network administrators, this

research project could guide them in developing the restriction policies applied on the

computer networks in the school premises. In addition to that, this research study

conducted by the group could serve as a reference for studies that would be conducted in

the future.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

This study aims to determine how social networking sites, particularly Facebook

and Friendster, influence the academic performance of the students. Through surveys and

other applicable research methods, the researchers also aim to analyze the data and the

evidences thoroughly and impartially. By using the statistical methods and analysis, the

group aims to arrive at a conclusion based on the gathered data. To aid the researchers in

substantiating the facts that were presented here, several works related to the subject

matter were also cited and analyzed. By doing so, the group intends to weigh the positive

and negative influences of social networking sites based on the existing studies

conducted.

Since Lyceum of the Philippines Laguna is one of the academic institutions in

Region IV that continuously supports and studies the advent of Information

superhighway, the researchers focused this study to the college students of Lyceum of the

Philippines University (Laguna).

SCOPES AND DELIMITATIONS

Because there are thousands of SNS in the Philippines nowadays, this research

study is primarily focused on the top social networking site in the country, namely

Facebook. Including other networking sites in the scope of the study would cause

inconsistencies in the data, especially those data that are gathered from tagged survey

posts. This is mainly because some of the students have multiple accounts from various

SNS. This would cause multiple responses from an individual if they would be tagged on

two or more surveys.

The sample population includes the network of friends of each of the researchers

in each of their account in Facebook. Students, as well as instructors, that are currently

directly related to Lyceum of the Philippines – Laguna were tagged in each of the

researchers survey post. The study is only limited to the current students and instructors

of Lyceum of the Philippines University – Laguna since the familiarity of the researchers

to the said population was broader compared to the student populations of other

universities and colleges. That is, it would be arduous for the researchers to gather data

and information from unfamiliar samples. Present Lycean instructors and students are the

focus of the studies because the group aims to gather current and up-to-date data from the

sample population. The study consisted of information related to respondent’s social

interaction and security, as well as individual opinions to certain issues like laws

concerning the cyberculture and other related information prior to the study like

educational level or status. The problem that may possibly rise with this research study is

the openness of the questionnaire to non-Lycean students and other Facebook users. To
avoid this inconsistency, the researchers agree to consider only the responses from

Lyceans.

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

INDEPENDENT
VARIABLES
gender
college year level
no. of hours used
access location
number of friends
network restrictions
Virtual Socialization Process ACADEMIC
Reasons for participation
DEPENDENT VARIABLES PERFORMANCE
Educational Benefits
Privacy and Security Issues OF STUDENTS
SNS Sites Exposure
SNS usage

Figure 1.1.

Conceptual Framework

1.8 DEFINITION OF TERMS

The following terms are used in this research study.

Access location – the place wherein a student commonly access the social networking
sites
AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) - an instant messaging and presence computer

program which uses the proprietary OSCAR instant messaging protocol and the TOC

protocol to allow registered users to communicate in real time.

ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network) - early wide area network; a

wide area computer network of the late 1960s linking U.S. government, academic,

business, and military sites

College year level - The level of education that college students are assumed to

have attained. In the scope of the study, it can either assume the values from first to

fourth, or possibly irregular.

Cyberculture - the culture that emerges from the use of computers for communication and

entertainment and business

Cyberself - identity taken on by Internet user; a false identity assumed by somebody in an

Internet chat room or in interactive Internet role-play

Cyberstalking – a form of stalking using the Internet

Facebook - a social networking website launched in February 2004 that is operated and

privately owned by Facebook, Inc., with more than 500 million active users in July 2010

Farmtown - a game on Facebook, installed through a Facebook application which lets

users manage and maintain a farm.

FarmVille - a real-time farm simulation game developed by Zynga available as

an application on the social networking website Facebook

Friendster - is a social networking website founded by computer programmers Jonathan

Abrams and Cris Emmanuel in 2002 in Mountain View, California before the creation,

launch and adoption of MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn and others

Gender – an independent variable which can either be male or female

Google Talk - Google's instant messaging (IM) service, which provides text messaging

and voice calling. It provides a link to the user's Gmail account as well as displays the

number of unread messages in the inbox.

Information superhighway - worldwide information network: the worldwide computer

network that includes the Internet, private networks, and proprietary online services. It

permits the rapid sending of many different forms of data, including voice, video, and

text.

Instant Messaging - Internet text messaging; a system for real-time text messaging on the

Internet

Internet - global computer network: a network that links computer networks all over the

world by satellite and telephone, connecting users with service networks such as e-mail

and the World Wide Web

M

Myspace - a social networking website which has became the most popular social

networking site in the United States in June 2006.

Multimedia documents - documents that contain a combination of text, photographs,

graphics, audio, and video.

Multiply - a social networking service with an emphasis on allowing users to share media

such as photos, videos and blog entries with their "real-world" network.

Network restriction - an authority to control access to areas and resources in a given

physical facility or computer-based information system.

SixDegrees.Com - a social network service website that lasted from 1997 to 2001 and

was based on the Web of Contacts model of social networking

Skype - Free voice over internet protocol (VOIP) service that allows users to

communicate across an internet connection by combining voice, video, and instant

messaging.

Social Networking Sites - places on the Internet where people meet in cyberspace to chat,

socialize, debate, and network.

V

Virtual Socialization Process – the social interaction of an individual or groups of

individual in a cyberworld.

WWW (World Wide Web) - Internet-connected files: a system for accessing,

manipulating, and downloading a very large set of hypertext-linked documents and other

files located on computers connected through the Internet

Yahoo! Messenger - Yahoo!'s instant messaging (IM) service, which includes text

messaging, voice calling and file sharing. The IM client includes Internet radio and the

regular phone calling at rates as low as one cent per minute.

Youtube – a video-sharing Internet venture owned by Google