Can Social Computing Networks
Be Used to Engage and Retain
Students?
Presenter:
Dr. Charles W. Mattis
Dean of the First-Year Program
Abilene Christian University
Contributors: Dr. Jason Morris
McNair Scholars Program
Abilene Christian University
Dr. Richard Beck
Professor of Psychology
Abilene Christian University
• The proliferation of social computing
networks on college campuses has
generated numerous questions in multiple
areas about the effects of computermediated social interaction:
– Psychological
– Interpersonal
– Social
– Cultural
• Additional questions being asked by
higher education:
– “should we encourage student involvement in
these networks?”
– “should the institution become involved itself
in online networks?”
– “does a students’ involvement enable them to
be more engaged with the community?”
– “does a students’ involvement enhance their
probability of remaining at the institution?”
Overview of Presentation
• Purpose and need for the study
• Theoretical framework (Tinto’s Model of
Student Departure)
• Social networking and college students
• The research design
• Preliminary results of this study
• Implications for practice
• Suggestions for future research
Purpose of the study
• The primary purpose of this study is to
elaborate on Tinto’s construct of social
integration. This study will attempt to
measure social integration by assessing
first-year students’ activity on the social
computing system known as Facebook.
Purpose of the study
This purpose will be accomplished through three
research objectives:
1. Operationalizing a social integration measure
by quantifying student activity on Facebook.
2. Testing the ability of the new social integration
measure (Facebook activity) to predict
freshman to sophomore retention in first-year
students at a private four-year institution.
3. Comparing the effectiveness of this new
measure of social integration to more traditional
measures of social integration.
Additional Institutional Benefit
• To enhance ongoing institutional
research by graduate students of
Psychology into social computing
networks including “e-connections”,
“e-personality”, “e-spirituality”,
“e-hypocrisy” and “e-flirtation”.
Need for the Study
• Despite the ever-growing popularity of Facebook
empirical research is slowly beginning to catch
up on this subject.
• This study potentially provides a new tool to
measure social integration.
• First-year advocates are constantly looking for
tools to enhance community within their
campus...can Facebook be one of these tools?
• This approach is appropriate for learning more
about students who are a part of the
“connected generation.”
Models and Theories
•
The development of explanatory conceptual
models has significantly contributed to the
understanding of student retention and
attrition. In the literature, four models of
student retention have been widely discussed
and explored.
–
–
–
–
Spady (1970)
Tinto (1975) (1987) and (1993)
Pascarella, Duby, and Iverson (1983)
Bean and Metzner (1985)
Theoretical Framework:
Tinto’s Model of Student Departure
– Tinto revised and updated his model in 1993.
– This model attempts to explain why some
individuals leave institutions prior to degree
completion.
– The central proposition of this theory is that
students have various pre-entry attributes that
interact with, and integrate into, the academic
and social systems of the institution.
Theoretical Framework:
Tinto’s Model of Student Departure
– Tinto (1993) postulates that these interactions
either lead to positive (integrative)
experiences that heighten intentions and
commitment to the institution or lead to
negative (malintegrative) experiences that
weaken intentions and commitment to the
institution.
Tinto’s (1993) Model of Student Departure
The Internet:
Bringing people together virtually or
pushing them apart physically?
Social networking and college
students
• Facebook has emerged in a few short years as
the newest tool in connecting students with each
other.
• Benefits: Gain familiarity with students and peers
as well as familiarity with a university prior to
attendance; Provides opportunities for first-year
students to engage the campus community; and
provides an outlet for distributing information
within the campus community.
• Concerns: Privacy issues and use of material for
monitoring and patrolling student behavior.
Social networking and college
students
Recruitment and Retention in Higher
Education, April 2006 (20)4.
• “Facebook is emerging as the newest tool
in engaging students and aiding retention,
particularly that of first-year students.”
• “…administrators are using Facebook to
connect with students openly and
efficiently.”
Social networking and college
students
Recruitment and Retention in Higher
Education, April 2006 (20)4.
Primary Uses:
• Increasing engagement and community
• Building relationships with faculty and
administrators
• Connecting with freshman and freshman
parents before they arrive
Social networking and college
students
• Facebook was launched in February of 2004 by
Harvard undergraduate Mark Zuckerberg in an
effort to help college students control their
image.
• Ranks as the 6th most trafficked site in the U.S.,
and as the top photo-sharing site.
• Today there are over 4 million registered users
covering over 2,000 campuses with nearly ¾ of
Facebook users signing on at least once every
24 hrs.
How Facebook Works
• Internet-based social networking services (ISNS)
can be used to connect people with messages,
pictures and thematic groups.
• Friends are made on Facebook by (1) a user
sending an invitation to another to be his/her
“friend” and (2) the recipient accepting the
invitation.
• Users are able to paint their own self-portrait with
self-descriptions and photographs while viewing
the portraits of their friends and associates.
The research design
• In order to determine a student’s level of activity,
which for the purpose of this study equates to
institutional involvement, certain elements of the
Facebook network were taken into consideration
in order to quantify the level of a student’s
activity.
• The initial research took place in three data
points: 1) self-reporting survey of the 2006-2007
freshman class, 2) data capture by the graduate
research team, and 3) the input of the fall to
spring retention rates into SPSS and analysis.
The research design
Data point 1
• The freshman class was asked to
participate in the study by completing
Tinto’s traditional social integration survey
that included questions about their
perception of their social integration on
campus. We added three questions of our
own regarding Facebook usage.
Survey Questions (based on Tinto’s
model)
1) In the past academic year, approximately how
many hours per week, on the average, did you
spend in organized extra-curricular activities?
2) The student friendships I have developed this
past year have been personally satisfying.
3) I have developed close personal relationships
with other students.
4) My interpersonal relationships with other
students have had a positive influence on my
personal growth, values and attitudes.
Survey Questions
5) My interpersonal relationships with other
students have had a positive influence on my
intellectual growth and interest in ideas.
6) It has been difficult for me to meet and make
friends with other students.
7) Few of the ACU students I know would be
willing to listen to me and help me if I had a
personal problem.
8) Most students at ACU have values and attitudes
which are different from my own.
Additional Facebook Usage
Questions
9)Please fill in the space with the appropriate
numbers: I spend ___ HOURS and/or
____MINUTES on Facebook during a TYPICAL
day.
10) Do you feel that Facebook has helped you
make friends and feel connected here at ACU
(check one)? ___Yes ___No
11) Which of the following do you use Facebook
for most often (check one): _____Connect with
people AT ACU ____Connect with people NOT
AT ACU
The research design
Data Point 2
•Number of
Friends
•Number of
Wall Posts
•Number of
Photo
Albums
•Number of
Groups
The research design
Data point 3
• Preliminary retention results from Fall
2006 to Spring 2007.
• A second analysis will be done in
September on retention results from
Spring 2007 to Fall 2007.
Preliminary results of this study
Table 1: Correlations between
Facebook indices and Tinto’s
Social Integration
Tinto Social
Intergration
Facebook Indices:
# of ACU Facebook Friends
•
Tinto’s Social Integration
measure was significantly
(albeit weakly) associated with
three of the Facebook indices:
Friends, wall-posts, and photo
albums. In short, as predicted
the self-report and Facebook
measures of social integration
show a degree convergence.
# of Groups
.18**
.09
# of Wall Posts
.16**
# of Photo Albums
.10*
*p < .05 **p < .01
Preliminary results of this study
•
Table 2: Comparison of persisters and non-persisters on Facebook indices and Tinto
Social Integration
Persisters (n=339)
Variables:
Non-Persisters Student
(n=23)
M
SD
M
SD
t-value
# of ACU Facebook Friends
108.42
66.84
81.16
49.91
1.74*
# of Groups
29.20
27.23
25.61
22.68
.55
# of Wall Posts
179.88
190.11
96.33
97.83
1.85*
# of Photo Albums
3.76
4.20
3.33
3.37
.41
Tinto Social Integration
15.87
4.20
14.30
4.57
1.72*
Facebook Indices:
•
*p < .05
•
Summary of Table 2: Consistent with predictions, non-persisters had significantly
fewer Facebook friends and Facebook wall-posts. Non-persisters had significantly
lower social integration scores as well. In short, both the self-report and Facebook
measures of social integration showed the predicted associations with retention.
Implications for practice
• This research suggests that online
relationship building is not a replacement of
face to face interaction, but seems to mirror
real world interpersonal interaction.
• This research suggests that those
institutions desiring to assess retention on
their own campus may want to examine this
alternative measure of social integration.
Implications for practice
• This new measure of social integration into
a college campus is perhaps more
appropriate for a hyper-connected
generation.
• This research suggests that faculty/staff
encouragement of Facebook interaction can
have a positive social impact on students
that may lead to greater retention.
• Others?
University Seminar Facebook
Groups
ACU Academic Facebook Groups
Biology
Business
Math
Music
Education Computer Science
Suggestions for Future Research
• Students primarily use Facebook as
entertainment, but can it be used as an
educational tool?
• Does institutional involvement on Facebook help
connect students or does it simply drive them
“underground”?
• What should be the nature of faculty/student
interaction on Facebook? Does this make
faculty too “approachable”?
Questions / Discussion