Declining Social Capital and Facebook

¶ … Bowling Alone/V2

In his book about declining social capital, sociologist Robert Putnam argued that individuals in society are increasingly disconnected from one another. He defined social capital as the connections among people, meaning "social networks and the norms of reciprocity and trustworthiness that arise from them" (Putnam 2000, p. 19). In his book Bowling Alone, Putnam explores various explanations that may account for the decline in social capital. People often claim they are "too busy" for activism, volunteerism and even for friendship. Today's population is more highly mobile than any previous generation, making it difficult for people to maintain long-term relationships. "[F]or people as for plants, frequent repotting disrupts root systems" (Putnam 204). People who move frequently tend to have weaker community ties. The development of sprawling suburbs result in fewer communities people can actually be tied to. There are gated communities, large and impersonal malls that have replaced Main Street businesses, and great distances between destinations that require we drive cars everywhere. The use of mass transit has declined over the years and the average commuting distance has increased. People end up spending more and more time alone in their cars.

At first, Facebook seems like the ideal solution; after all, Facebook facilitates connections and enables us to keep in touch with hundreds of friends using just a few keystrokes. Yet it is precisely because we use keystrokes rather than face-to-face conversation that supports Putnam's thesis. As Putnam points out, there has been a decline in the number of bowling leagues despite an increase in the number of bowlers. Apparently, we are bowling alone. Likewise, friendship on Facebook is a solitary activity. People may not even realize they are alone. It may seem as though they have a great many friends but the reality is that there is little interaction with those friends, even virtually. Friend lists often become a numbers game with no real relationship in existence.

True friendship takes time to build and requires that both people be engaged. Vernon (2010) argues that the very coining of the verb "friending," which is what Facebook fans do with one another, devalues the whole notion of meaningful relationships. As individuals become increasingly busy, they make less time to devote to making and maintaining real friends. Facebook friends seem to be a viable option because we can fit them into our schedules. If we are too busy to meet for coffee or just to "hang out," we can post messages to friends on a timetable that works for us, say, two in the morning.

People may feel they are part of a real community but there is seldom anything substantive to relationships that exist only on Facebook. We share vacation photos and favorite web sites, throw virtual food at one another, and share the results of quizzes that supposedly provide insights into our true nature. Real friends give and get much more from one another.

The danger lies in the fact that a generation of young people may truly believe they are interconnected. Recent studies on childhood and contemporary life show a lack of unstructured time today. Whereas in past generations, children had the freedom to "just wander off down the street" (Vernon 2010), today's kids have too many tasks, deadlines and pressures to allow them to make friends in a more natural, unhurried setting. Without ever really learning how to make friends, today's younger generation may rely on social networking sites such as Facebook for friendship, never realizing what they are missing.

Putnam pointed out, "Middle-aged and older people are more active in more organizations than younger people, attend church more often, vote more regularly, both read and watch the news more frequently, are less misanthropic and more philanthropic, are more interested in politics, work more on community projects, and volunteer more" (Putnam 248).

Generation X, which includes people born between 1965 and 1980, describes roughly forty-six million Americans (Stephey 2008). Millennials, sometimes called "Generation Y," are the current generation, the oldest of whom turn thirty this year while the youngest are just approaching adolescence (Keeter and Taylor 2009). Just as people have personalities and characteristics, so do groups of people categorized by age demographic. Each generation shapes culture and society for the generation that follows. The children of Generation X held different beliefs and attitudes than their parents, known as the Baby Boomers. The Millennials' beliefs and attitudes likewise evolved from those of Generation X

Keeter and Taylor (2009) cite three processes that result in generational differences. They call the first the "life cycle effect," which refers to the changing roles people play as they age. Today's youth behave very differently from the middle-aged and elder populations of today, but that is to be expected because of different responsibilities and needs. Keeter and Taylor assert that today's youth may well behave like today's older generation when they themselves have aged. The second process is one Keeter and Taylor (2009) call the "cohort effect." Each generation is shaped, to a large extent, by the "unique historical circumstances" in which young people come of age. Many of the ideas and values people develop during this time persist throughout their lives. Keeter and Taylor (2009) call the third process "period effects." Major events such as wars, scientific and technological advances, and social movements affect the entire population but they note "their impact is often greatest among the young because their values and habits are less fixed than those of other age groups."

A 2008 report released by Forrester Research cited differences in use of technology as a major factor in distinguishing between Gen Xers and Millenials. Millennials are very comfortable with technology, since they have grown up with more of it than any previous generation. Each generation learns something from the generation before it. The new generation eventually becomes the older generation.

Putnam published Bowling Alone in 2000 and it is probably fair to say that he would find greater decline in social capital eleven years later. He issued a challenge at the end of his book: