1. Race, Ethnicity and the Strength of Facebook Ties Gustavo S. Mesch Department of Sociology & Anthropology University of Haifa, Israel (*)

2. This study investigated the role of race and ethnicity on social ties of young adolescents on Facebook. Tested hypothesis derived from social diversification perspective: multicultural societies race and ethnicity are central social status that shape the nature of associations in society. Investigated ethnic and racial differences in the number of total ties, and the number of weak and strong ties on Facebook (self report). A secondary analysis of the U.S. Teens’ Social Media and Privacy Survey conducted by the Pew Research Center’s Internet and American Life Project US (n=625) was used. Race, Ethnicity and the Strength of Facebook Ties

3. Young people’s use of social networking sites (SNSs) in the U.S. has increased dramatically in recent years. While in 2006 only 55% of teens reported using social networking sites, in 2012 the percentage rose to 81% (Madden et al., 2013). The various uses of SNSs can also be conceptualized as social capital enhancing activities (Robinson, 2011). Social capital broadly refers to the resources accumulated through the involvement in different types of associations and social networks (Lin, 1999). The notion behind social capital is that investment in social relations has returns. Studies have offered three explanations for the benefits First, social networks facilitate the flow of information, and social groups differ in their access to sources of information. Second, social ties may influence the agents who play a critical role in decisions such as hiring. Finally, social relations reinforce identity and recognition. These three benefits—access to information, influence, and social reinforcement--may explain why social capital provides benefits and positive outcomes (Lin, 1999).

4. Race, Ethnicity and the Strength of Facebook Ties How do individuals invest in social relations? Coleman (1988) argued that network closure, resulting from relationships with close and socially similar ties, is a distinctive advantage of social capital. In this view, it is closure that maintains and enhances trust, social norms and sanctions. Other scholars stressed the importance of weak ties or bridges in networks that promote the flow of information and influence (Granoverter, 1983; Lin, 1999). For those who lack access to social resources and are searching for better educational and occupational opportunities, accessing weak ties in the network is more useful.

5. As a communication platform, the benefits of Facebook use might be associated with the characteristics of one’s contact list, who are both the suppliers and consumers of the individual’s information. One question that has not been addressed is whether the types of contacts one has on Facebook and the potential benefits that accrue from using Facebook are universal or differ based on one’s race and ethnicity. On one hand, it is reasonable to argue that adolescents are a disadvantaged group in society, as they lack independent spatial mobility, and their associations tend to be constrained to locally based foci of activity (mainly school and their neighborhood). However, in multicultural societies access to valuable resources varies depending on one’s race and ethnicity. Indeed, ethnic and racial residential segregation in the U.S. implies that young minority group members are limited to interacting socially only with those who are like them. Homophilous ties might replicate and even amplify existing social inequalities (DiMaggio & Garip, 2012; Mesch & Talmud, 2010). Thus, the existence of ethnic and racial differences in the use of SNSs in the U.S. should direct our attention to the role of youth motivations when accessing these sites.

6. Race, Ethnicity and the Strength of Facebook Ties Study hypothesis H1: Adolescent members of minorities will report a lower number of total ties on Facebook than members of the majority group. H2: Youth from disadvantaged minority groups (Blacks and Hispanics) will report more connections to weak ties in their Facebook account than members of the majority group. H3: Youth from disadvantaged minority groups (Blacks and Hispanics) will report fewer connections to strong ties in their Facebook account than members of the majority group. H4: The higher the number of weak ties, the greater the likelihood of reporting positive outcomes from online activities.

7. Race, Ethnicity and the Strength of Facebook Ties Sample data from the 2012 U.S. Teens’ Social Media and Privacy Survey conducted by the Pew Research Internet and American Life Data included 802 young adolescents. From them 78% (n= 625) youth reported having an account on Facebook and these ones were included in the study. Average teens’ age: 14.54 years old (SD=1.69). Boys and girls were equally represented in the sample. Parental age was on average 44.50 years old (SD=8.98). Parental education: 40.2 percent high school or lower education, 46.5 percent some or completed college education and 13.1 percent reported a graduate education. Frequency of social networking sites use, 41.9 percent reported visiting several times a day, and 25.3 percent about once a day. Number of Facebook average was 277.70 (SD=217.71).

8. Race, Ethnicity and the Strength of FB Ties Strong ties is a scale created from positive responses to having parents, siblings, extended family or friends at school as Facebook contacts (M=3.40, SD=.79). Weak ties is a composite variable created from positive responses to having facebook contacts who were not school mates, teachers or coaches, as well as celebrities, musicians or athletes or other people they had never met in person (M=1.83, SD=.97). Total ties. the sum of all of the positive responses to the entire list of contacts. Online friends a single item asked indicate if the respondent had ever met someone online who became a good friend. A yes response was coded as 1 and a no response as 0.

9. Table 1. One-way ANOVA of the study’s variables according to race and ethnicity

10. Findings The average age of the adolescents was similar for the members of the three groups. Differences in the size and composition of their Facebook social networks based on race and ethnicity. The total number of types of connections was 5.33 (SD=1.21) for Whites, 5.53 (SD=1.26) for Blacks and 4.63 (1.16) for Hispanics. The difference between Whites and Blacks was not statistically significant. average number of strong and weak ties reported as connections in the Facebook clearly differs based on their race and ethnicity. Consistent with H2, White adolescents reported on average more strong ties (M=3.55, SD=.69) than African Americans (M=3.27, SD=.84) and Hispanics (M=2.94, SD=.91). The mean differences among the three groups were statistically significant. In addition, consistent with H3, White adolescents reported on average fewer weak ties (M=1.77, SD=.99) than African Americans (M=2.25, SD=.82). The results provide partial support for H4 about meeting new people online. higher for African American youngsters (M=.54, SD=.50) than for Whites (M=.34, SD=.47) or Hispanics (M=.41, SD=.49). The difference between Blacks and Whites was statistically significant, but for Whites and Hispanics it was not.

11. Table 2. OLS predicting the total number of ties in a youngster ’ s Facebook contact list

12. Multivariate Findings Findings did not support H1, which expected that members of the minorities would report fewer total ties than members of the majority group. The results indicated that Black and White youth did not differ in the total number of Facebook’s ties. Hispanic youngsters reported a larger network size than Blacks or Whites. I The relationship between age and network size was positive, indicating that the older the adolescent, the higher the number of individuals on his/her Facebook contact list. In accordance with previous studies, girls had larger networks than boys.

13. Table 3. Ordered regression predicting weak ties

14. Findings weak ties H2 expected that members of disadvantaged ethnic and racial groups would report a higher number of weak ties. The test for parallel lines that for the null hypothesis that the dependent variable categories differ and are not parallel is rejected and the model is appropriate for the test of the hypothesis. The findings provide partial support for H2, with Blacks reporting a higher number of weak ties than Whites, but Hispanics not reporting more weak ties than Whites. Thus, the results seem to indicate that the social diversification hypothesis may be more appropriate for explaining differences between racial groups rather than ethnic groups. Age was also associated with the number of weak ties. The older the adolescent, the higher the number of weak ties in their Facebook contact list.

15. Table 4. Ordered regression predicting strong ties

16. Findings Strong ties Differences in age had no statistical effect on the number of strong ties, but gender was statistically significant, indicating that girls were more likely to report strong ties than boys. Technological use was not statistically significant.

17. Table 5. Strong ties, weak ties and positive outcomes

18. More Findings on potential outcomes Table 5 presents the results for three potentially positive outcomes of having strong and weak ties. The results indicate that the type of social tie on Facebook matters. Strong ties was not associated with meeting a person online who became a good friend. However, the greater the number of weak ties on Facebook, the greater the likelihood of reporting meeting a person online who became a good friend. The second item whether they had ever had online an experience that made them feel good about themselves. Again, strong ties was not associated with such experiences online. However, the number of weak ties increased the likelihood of reporting having online experiences that increased the respondents’ self-esteem. The final item asked the respondents to indicate if they had ever had an experience online that made them feel closer to the other person. Again, the results supported the hypothesis.

19. Discussion The results of the analysis generally provide some support for the social network perspective of social capital and the social diversification hypothesis. We demonstrated differences in the size of the networks of different ethnic groups but not different racial groups. Contrary to our expectations, the study found that Hispanics had larger networks than Whites or Blacks. Furthermore, we found no statistically significant differences between Whites and Blacks in the size of their networks. It is very likely that the results indicate that social conditions including spatial segregation are irrelevant with regard to the size of an individual’s Facebook network. Nevertheless, our findings do provide strong support for the central hypothesis of the study. The model of weak ties (Table 3) points to a positive and significant effect of race on the number of weak ties. Blacks reported a larger number of weak contact ties than Whites or Hispanics. Taken together, the results provide strong support for the basic argument of the social diversification hypothesis and show that in the U.S. race and ethnicity matter in the types of associations that members from different groups attempt to create through Facebook.

20. Limitations This study has limitations as well. First, it was based on a secondary analysis of data that were gathered for another purpose. Future studies are needed to collect data that measure the strength of the ties more precisely. For example, a study using a name generator as a measure of the strength of ties and some measures of reciprocity would improve the robustness of the findings. Furthermore, the study was limited to the consequences of the respondents’ involvement with different types of ties. Future studies should measure the quality and types of information that are accessed through Facebook networks. Nevertheless, the current study contributes to the literature on race and ethnicity and the use of online communication platforms. It also calls for more studies on the potential benefits and limitations of the use of Facebook for disadvantaged groups in society and its implications for social stratification in multicultural societies

21. Thank you Gustavo Mesch gustavo@soc.haifa.ac.ilgustavo@soc.haifa.ac.il Soc.haifa.ac.il/~gustavo