SOCIAL MEDIA
I know there will be a number of you out there who see the words “Social Media” and instantly think "Oh yeah that new fad". So, I thought it might be a good topic to bring up in order to discuss the short-term and possible long term impact it will have on Business Psychology, or what we call in the U.S Industrial Organizational Psychology.
What Is Social Media?
Officially, Social Media is described as "a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0, and that allow the creation and exchange of user-generated content." (Kaplan & Haenlein 2010). However, I find the definition presented by Kaplan & Haenlein (2010) filled with too much jargon to be of any actual practical use. Consequently, for the sake of simplicity lets agree that Social Media is
"a term used to describe a new wave of communicating that allows one to create a personal profile within the public domain."
Free and easy to use = Large user base
Using Social Media is very easy and generally is free. Sites such as Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook are but a few of the sites available. Facebook is one of the largest "Social Media" platforms and also one of the few that maintains easily accessible statistics on its user base. Currently, Facebook has 750 million active users and these users spend 700 billion minutes a month on the site.
https://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?statistics
The Big Questions
1.) With the growing number of people, businesses, and organizations using social media as a means of communicating, where does Business Psychology as a field fit in?
2.)Is social media a new tool to be explored by Business Psychologists? Or is it something that should be scrutinized?
3.)Does the use of Social Media as a means to recruit and select potential employees pose an opportunity or threat to traditional methods?
4.)What are the Strengths or Weakness of using "Social Media" in Research or Consulting ?
