Social Media: A Boon or a Bane for Society?

By Dr Moutusy Maity

Using the Internet is almost synonymous with using social media, since most websites today incorporate these tools of interaction. What are the implications of using social media?

The enthusiastic embracing of digital channels, especially those that are powered by the Internet, by users across the world is a reality today. We may refer to such technology-mediated communication as that which is carried out by the use of information communication technology (ICT), and can be contrasted to face-to-face communication. Prominent among such ICT is social media.

So, what is social media? A definition is probably in order. Social media are computer-mediated tools that allow people to create, share, or exchange information, ideas, and pictures/videos in virtual communities and networks (facilitated by the Internet/Intranet). Such tools provide users of the Internet unprecedented access to information, freedom to collaborate or build relationships, as well as to create and exchange user-generated content. Social networking websites (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) may be considered as a subset of social media. Social media may also include blogs and community pages that are part of company-specific websites.

Users on social media often wear different hats… one may choose to disclose a lot of information about oneself (e.g., blogs), or none at all (e.g., assume an avatar on a social networking site). Broadly speaking, there are probably two kinds of interactions that occur on social media: a) between groups/organizations and an individual user, and b) among individual users.

The nature of interaction on social media often imparts a feeling of empowerment to an individual user, who is now able to find a voice that can be heard over the “might” of specific groups/organizations (e.g., companies, governments). The individual consumer/user has greater control over messages, there is lower information asymmetry, complaints are easily voiced, and the complaint redressal often speeds up (to the advantage of the individual). While the above may be true, there may also be a sense of heightened pitch, tension between the conversing parties (e.g., companies and users), and can lead to outright aggression and trolling. Communication or interaction among individuals, similarly, may lead to productive collaborative effort, and social inclusion; but, can also spin out of control where individuals hurl hurtful messages at each other. 

Let us add another layer of complexity to the above discussed scenario. Websites often collect granular data on consumers in a seamless and an unobtrusive process. Specifically, on various social networking websites, the promise of the website is that of allowing unprecedented reach and connections that is made possible by the use and adoption of information and communication technology by the firm and the user. Today, with a plethora of tools and methodologies at the disposal of these firms that operate in the virtual domain, these businesses can dip into a large ecosystem of methodologies and tools to obtain an increasingly comprehensive view of the user/consumer by capturing each click made, archiving each word ever written and noting each image posted on their websites. Companies can now use social listening tools, semiotics, and analytics to understand how consumers interact with media, messages and with each other. Such companies include virtual social networks and e-commerce firms. Such data gathering allow the website to serve personalized content to their users.

What are the implications of increasingly personalized content? Such personalized content creates “echo chambers” or “filter bubbles” for every user on that particular social media or social networking website. An echo chamber is essentially an environment in which a person is likely to encounter only beliefs or opinions that coincide with their own; it is an environment where an individual’s existing views are reinforced, and alternative ideas are not considered. For example, the recent series of television advertisements about the search engine Google (i.e., the “Pata hai” series) reinforce the idea of personalization of content…an individual gets to see only what interests her.

Such filter bubbles often create a false sense of a cocoon of ideas, such that an individual may feel that that is the ONLY point of view that exists. Too much personalization pushes similar content at an individual on social media to the exclusion of plurality of views. Feeding on such content is likely to lead to a feeling of smugness about oneself, and when pushed further can lead to one becoming intolerant of a multiplicity of ideas and thoughts. Such intolerance may lead to bullying and trolling behavior on social media, as already mentioned above.

In sum, is social media a boon or a bane for the society in general? Certainly, social media has much to offer to the society, and we have benefitted from increased convenience in information acquisition, collaboration, conversations and communication, dialogue, engagement, purchase, and a lot more. At the same time, social media has also made individuals and groups communicate in a manner that is unbecoming of them as individuals, and which has led to unwanted outcomes online as well as offline. 

As a society, we need to understand that social media is still new media; it is still in its infancy. For the first time, individuals have an unregulated media, where norms and laws (if any) are still evolving. So how do we ensure that we use social media that is acceptable to all? First, the responsibility of using the media rests with each of us. Every time an individual uses social media, she needs to ask whether she is using the media responsibly or not.  Second, are we aware of the consequences of the communication/message that we put on social media? We need to think through the consequences of anything we put out or “post” on social media. Third, we need to develop personal norms for what is acceptable and not acceptable communication on social media.

About the Author:

Dr Moutusy Maity is the author of Internet Marketing published by Oxford University Press. Currently, she is Professor of Marketing Management at Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Lucknow. Dr Maity has spent the last 17 years researching about the consumer and adoption of technology. Her research interests are in the areas of consumer interaction with technology (e.g., Internet/e-commerce and mobile/m-commerce), customer relationship management (CRM), and technology adoption at the bottom of the pyramid (BOP) in developing countries.