[Air-L] Facebook abstainers and refuseniks

William Dutton william.dutton at oii.ox.ac.uk
Sun Oct 7 03:36:43 PDT 2012


An issue tied to not using FB or social media in general is that experience with the Internet shapes beliefs and attitudes about the technology, such as trust. It is what I have called an 'experience technology', and social media, sort of an experience 2.0 technology. Those most concerned over the Internet and social media are non-users.  See: Dutton, W. H., and Shepherd, A. (2006), ‘Trust in the Internet as an Experience Technology’, Information, Communication and Society, 9(4): 433-51. That said, I am sympathetic, as I attempted to avoid having a TV in my home for years, but received many TVs as gifts. 

On 7 Oct 2012, at 04:05, McLaughlin, Lisa M. Dr. wrote:

> This is just an idea, but it may be interesting to look into the reaction,
> often hostile, that greets those of us who don't use Facebook. I teach a
> course that highlights new ICT/social media and I often am asked how I can
> teach such a course without ever having had a Facebook page (or tweeted!).
> My rote, however simplistic, response usually is that I don't have a
> Facebook page because I *do* teach a course that focuses on social media,
> and my tendency to be a cautious consumer now is on full display.
> 
> Still, one thing that intrigues me is that the majority of individuals with
> whom I have such conversations seem to range from their being annoyed to
> angry upon learning that I don't have a Facebook page. I recently recovered
> from a serious illness, and one reaction that surprised me was that I often
> was pressed to get a Facebook page so that I could share "my progress" with
> "friends" and "family."
> 
> In fact, my feeling is that I wished to protect my privacy (and continue to
> feel this way), and I had to beg my siblings to not post "updates" on "my
> progress" on their own Facebook pages.
> 
> I have begun to think about the refusal to have a Facebook page as something
> interpreted as a form of rebellion (however slight compared to Tiananmen
> Square) or transgression with the result that many folks feel that they must
> discipline and punish. My question: Why is this happening? Worded
> differently, this may be a good research question.
> 
> Best,
> 
> Lisa
> 
> -- 
> Lisa McLaughlin, Ph.D.
> Associate Professor, Mass Communication & Program in Women’s, Gender, and
> Sexuality Studies
> Co-editor, Feminist Media Studies
> Miami University-Ohio
> 
> Contact:
> Mass Communication 
> Williams Hall
> Miami University-Ohio
> Oxford, Ohio 45056
> USA
> Tele: 513-529-3547
> Fax: 513-529-1835
> Email: mclauglm at muohio.edu
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On 10/6/12 5:26 AM, "Nicholas John" <nicholas.john at mail.huji.ac.il> wrote:
> 
>> Hello Researchers of the Internet
>> I wonder if anyone knows of any studies of people who *don't* use Facebook
>> as a matter of choice?
>> I'm doing a study of my own and want to make sure I've got the background
>> literature covered.
>> Thanks in advance,
>> Nicholas
>> _______________
>> Dr. Nicholas John
>> sociothink.com
>> share.sociothink.com
>> @nicholasajohn
>> Latest article: Sharing and Web 2.0: The emergence of a
>> keyword<http://nms.sagepub.com/content/early/2012/07/03/1461444812450684>,
>> New Media & Society
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William H. Dutton
Professor of Internet Studies
Oxford Internet Institute
University of Oxford 
1 St Giles', Oxford OX1 3JS  
UNITED KINGDOM

Tel +44 (0)1865 287 210
Fax +44 (0)1865 287 211
Cell +44 (0)7768 823906
Web: http://people.oii.ox.ac.uk/dutton/about/
You can access my papers on the Social Science Research Network (SSRN) at: http://ssrn.com/author=478025
Forthcoming: The Oxford Handbook of Internet Studies: http://ukcatalogue.oup.com/product/9780199589074.do




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