I mentioned in some of my previous blog entries and comments to other’s blogs that I’ve become numb to the egocentric posting habits of what seems to be the vast majority of social media users these days. To borrow a quote from the movie Easy A, “Your generation loves to share their thoughts, and I have to tell you, they’re not all gems.” I gravitated away from Facebook and towards Twitter because I feel that I have access to more valuable content.

All that said, the Pew research studies this week demonstrated that social media and online groups do have an upside. Generally, people who use the internet are more likely to be involved in community and organizational groups than people who don’t use the internet. The Rainie, Purcell and Smith paper also found that Twitter users are more civically engaged than just about anyone else. This doesn’t surprise me. The internet gives us more effective and efficient ways to communicate with each other when we aren’t face-to-face. It also provides us with more access to information. We have an opportunity like never before to inform and involve ourselves, and many people are taking advantage. Jansen’s research found similar results of community involvement among religiously active internet users and non-religiously active users. Members of religious groups generally had greater feelings of efficacy when it came to making a difference in their communities.

The Wojcieszak  and Mutz study looked at exposure to political discussion and contrasting views via online channels like social network sites. If you use social media, even a little bit, I’m sure you’ve witnessed some political diatribe at one point or another. The authors of this study found examples of reinforcement of like-minded views but also positive political discussion in non-political channels. I personally feel that political and religious discussions are too emotional for mass discussion online. I can’t think of a time when people with polar opposite opinions ever altered their stances or even came to an understanding. It’s always an argument (particularly online) if you don’t fundamentally agree. If you do agree, then you simply reinforce each other.  However, it’s hard to avoid these arguments. The authors pointed out that “just as politics often comes up in face-to-face contexts when discussing other issues such as movie listings, personal gossip, or children’s problems at school, the same is true of online exchanges.”