Facebook Friendships Based on Assumptions by Tom Jacobs - Article Example

Facebook Friendships Based on Assumptions The paper is aimed to analyse the issue that people in social networks, such as Facebook, have the tendency to assume their friends’ views regarding subjects such as political perspective. In the article written by Tom Jacobs which he entitled “Facebook Friendships Based on Assumptions” he pointed out that a study proved that people tend to assume the agreement and similarities of Facebook friends to their political views and that the results showed that such assumptions were significantly questionable (Jacobs, 2010). The main objective of the paper is to specifically analyse and article by Jacobs and the study which became the basis of his views which was undertaken by Sharad Goel, Winter Mason and Duncan Watts on the “Real and Perceived Attitude Agreement in Social Networks.” It explored the similarities in beliefs and views of the sample population with their friends and acquaintances through studies conducted using the social network Facebook. Discussion of the Article by Tom Jacobs The article by Tom Jacobs is focused on the dynamics in social networks such as Facebook. The interest on the subject matter increased due to the release of “The Social Network” wherein certain concepts had been introduced that attracted criticisms. Such concepts were related to the “inaccurate assumptions” made by people about their Facebook friends. The article presented the results of the study conducted by Goel, Mason and Watts in a more simplified statement that “friends disagree more than they think they do” because disagreements are commonly not voiced and discussed (Jacobs, 2010). Facebook is a flatform that can connect friends regardless of distance. According to Jacobs, there is a tendency for the people in Facebook to assume the opinions of their friends on the mere fact that they are friends and that they are similar in more ways than one. But characteristics based on what can be perceived in social networks is very prone to judgement based on stereotypes. Although this can be accurate in most cases, also based on the similarities of the characteristics of people within the same group or between friends, in reality people cannot know the true opinions of other people (Jacobs, 2010). The article also presented the methods and results of the study conducted by Goel, Mason and Watts. Since the journal article is presented in a formal form of language with scientific jargons, Jacobs’ simplified manner of writing for the laymen is important in understanding the pertinent data presented in the journal article. Discussion of the Journal Article by Goel, Mason and Watts The result of the study undertaken by Sharad Goel, Winter Mason and Duncan Watts was the basis of Tom Jacobs’ article. It is important to present the reference of the article to be able to determine the validity of the statements given. In addition, a comparative analysis is an essential exercise and a form of the critical analysis. It can also serve as a way to be able to have an in depth view on the subject matter. The Abstract The abstract presented information on the background of the study. It explained that it is a common notion that similar traits between friends can be observed since friendship can be related to the similarity in interests and activities. For that matter, the study wanted to explore the similarities in the political views between friends. This was undertaken through the analysis of the real and perceived attitudes of the friends of each member of the sample population specifically in terms of their political view. The study is rooted on the fact the friends commonly make assumptions regarding the views of friends (Goel, Mason, and Watts, 2010, p.1). The conclusion of the study had been presented in the abstract. Results showed that the similar attitudes do not dictate the similarity in views. The study revealed that differences between friends can be considered as a common phenomenon. The paper expressed that “friends agree more than they think they do.” In addition, discussions of views were not included in the common activities between friends. Perceived views were then attributed to stereotypical basis. As a result, the findings expressed that dynamics of political polarization and the different social factors in play were the main reasons for the existence of the gap between the real and the perceived agreement in social context (Goel, Mason, and Watts, 2010, p.1). The abstract had been clear in presenting the objectives, results and conclusions of the study but the methods had not been indicated. This is important since the study made use of the development associated with the social network Facebook in achieving responses for surveying the views of the sample population. Thus, including the said method can give the reader a better preview on the paper. Based on the standard guidelines in writing a journal article, an abstract contains 450 words with three sections namely the significance of the research, methods and data presentation, and the results (Clare and Hamilton, 2003, p.31). It is the concise representation of the contents of the whole article (p.6). The Background Information and Literature Review The paper was introduced through the presentation of the background information on the concept of homophily principle which can be defined as the association between similar entities, for example, the concept of similar attributes in the social interaction such as education, income, gender, race, and age. The definition of the said concept established the basis of the gap between the real and the perceived attitude agreements in social networks. The paper clearly pointed out the reason why the perceived attitude agreement is present. This is based on the stereotypes that people of the same social group have the same views, beliefs and attitudes (Goel, Mason, and Watts, 2010, p.1). Another base concept of the paper is the increasing interest of the study of similarity in beliefs within social groups in gauging the political views of the people, for example in national election. Different studies had been the basis of the inclusion of such view. This also became the introduction to one of the main concepts tackled in the paper which is a look on the political views of the people within social groups. The introduction also presented the assumption that people commonly overestimate their similarity with their friends or with the members of the social groups where they belong. For that matter, the concept of the gap between perceived and real attitude agreement was again established (Goel, Mason, and Watts, 2010, p.1). The concept of false consensus was also presented, which can also be considered as another notion that can explain the differences between the perceived and the real social attitude agreement. False consensus is the person’s view that every member of the group would have a particular agreement on the basis of the fact that they belong in the same group (Goel, Mason, and Watts, 2010, p.1). The introduction of the paper also presented review of related literature regarding the topic. It is focused on the determination and measurement of the variables pertaining to the perceived and real agreement. These variables include the response of one person on the question, the response of the friend to the question and the person’s perceived response to the question (Goel, Mason, and Watts, 2010, p.1-2). Different studies that explore the perceived and assumed views of friends were then presented as a form of literature review to support the issue on the gap between the real and the perceived attributes. Other studies included in the review discussed the issue on the perception of political views, for example the research conducted on the preference of the people regarding presidential election campaigns. Also included in the related literature were the studies and explorations of the applications of the applications in Facebook that can enhance the process of data gathering specifically through survey (Goel, Mason, and Watts, 2010, p.2). The Method In the article by Jacobs, he presented important parts of the methodology such as the sample population used for the study but he wrote that 2,500 Facebook users served as the sample population. This is inaccurate since based on the study 2,504 individuals installed the survey application in Facebook in the 4 months the study had been undertaken. It can be considered that Jacobs objective is to simplify the conveyed information in the article but numerical data when altered is a misinformation. It is important to give accurate and valid information since these are the most essential component of research process (Clare and Hamilton, 2003, p.28; Goel, Mason, and Watts, 2010, p.2; Jacobs, 2010). Binary questions were incorporated in the survey application regarding the respondent’s attitude, the attitude of friend and certain questions on political attitudes. A total of 47 questions were included in the application on categories such as moral, civil rights, foreign affairs, economic, political engagement, and political affiliation. The variety of question can be considered important on the basis of the flow of the survey process. In addition, questions in categories other than politics served as basis for the analysis (Goel, Mason, and Watts, 2010 p.2). Questions of political weight such as the sympathy over which side of the Israelis and Paletinians conflict, the tax for universal healthcare, the choice between Democrats and Republicans, and the frequency of reading newspapers were used to establish political orientation of the respondents. Another question about the discussion of political views with friends was also included (Goel, Mason, and Watts, 2010 p.2). These questions were alternated with light questions to be able to keep the respondents interested. In a survey form of data gathering, ascending arrangement of questions in terms of difficulty is common. But in terms of political issues, the method of alternating difficult questions can be undertaken. The writers also included limits of methodology to explain the focus of the research. This is important specifically in the critical analysis of the paper. The measurement of agreement relative to the baseline agreement did not require external validity since the parameter is based on other factors. The study was focused on the marginal effects of friendship on the real and perceived similarity relative to the pairs drawn from the same population. Random sampling had also been applied in terms of the pairs selected in the population. This had been accomplished through the random people who installed the survey application (Goel, Mason, and Watts, 2010 p.3). The methodology then can be considered standard on the basis of the guidelines in writing scientific papers. The basis of the questions was also important since the researchers made sure that questions were of standard quality. Basically, in a survey research, the questions can be considered one of the most important elements in data gathering and even analysis. This is because the analysis and the conclusion are based on such data (Clare and Hamilton, 2003). The Results and Discussion From the total number of people who installed the survey application, 900 individuals served as the source of the gathered data. The presentation of the results of the study was organized and subdivided into the concepts of interest such as real attitude agreement, perceived attitude agreement, accuracy, sensitivity and specificity of the research, and analysis of awareness. These topics were adequately discussed and supported with statistical analysis, tabulated data and clear computations. The results of the paper have been presented clearly. This can be considered important in understanding the results of the survey (Clare and Hamilton, 2003; Goel, Mason, and Watts, 2010 p.4-9). According to the results agreements between friends happen 75 percent of the time. For randomly matched pairs on the other hand there was a 63 percent agreement rate. For that matter, a quarter or 25 percent of the time there can be disagreements specifically in terms of political views. But based on the response of respondents, there was 84 percent belief that their friends agree with their points of view (Goel, Mason, and Watts, 2010 p.4-9; Jacobs, 2010). The results of the research then concluded that discussions on specific issues were not the basis for the perceived agreement but the person’s own opinion and the stereotyped belief and knowledge of the friend. Specifically, political issues were not included in the common subjects of conversation between friends, thus, real agreement had been considered lower than the perceived level of agreement (Goel, Mason, and Watts, 2010 p.9). Conclusion The paper was aimed to compare the presentation of an article and a journal study. There is an observed difference in the presentation specifically in the language. The article by Jacobs was based on the article by Goel, Mason and Watts. Jacobs used easily accessible language while the journal article used academic language commonly harder to understand for the laymen. References: Clare, J. and Hamilton, H. (2003). Writing Research: Transforming Data into Text. Elvesier Health Sciences. Goel, S., Mason, W. and Watts, D.J. (2010) Real and Perceived Attitude Agreement in Social Networks. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1-7. Jacobs, T. (2010, September 21). Facebook Friendships Based on Assumptions [online]. Miller-McCune Magazine. Available at: [Accessed 21 November 2010]. Read More