NotesFAQContact Us
Collection
Advanced
Search Tips
50 Years of ERIC
50 Years of ERIC
The Education Resources Information Center (ERIC) is celebrating its 50th Birthday! First opened on May 15th, 1964 ERIC continues the long tradition of ongoing innovation and enhancement.

Learn more about the history of ERIC here. PDF icon

Back to results
Peer reviewed Peer reviewed
Direct linkDirect link
ERIC Number: EJ965343
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2012
Pages: 13
Abstractor: As Provided
Reference Count: 30
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0735-6331
An Examination of the Reciprocal Relationship of Loneliness and Facebook Use among First-Year College Students
Lou, Lai Lei; Yan, Zheng; Nickerson, Amanda; McMorris, Robert
Journal of Educational Computing Research, v46 n1 p105-117 2012
College students are using social network sites such as Facebook to communicate with their families and friends. However, empirical evidence is needed to examine whether there exists a reciprocal relationship between students' use of social network sites and their psychological well-being. The present study focused on two reciprocally-related research questions: (a) Is there an impact of loneliness on Facebook intensity and motive for using Facebook among first-year college students? (b) Is there an impact of Facebook intensity and motive for using Facebook on loneliness? Data were collected from a sample of 340 first-year college students and were analyzed through structural equation modeling. No reciprocal relationship was found in the study: Facebook intensity had a positive impact on loneliness and, motive for using Facebook did not have any impact on loneliness, whereas loneliness influenced neither Facebook intensity nor motive for using Facebook. (Contains 1 table and 2 figures.)
Baywood Publishing Company, Inc. 26 Austin Avenue, P.O. Box 337, Amityville, NY 11701. Tel: 800-638-7819; Tel: 631-691-1270; Fax: 631-691-1770; e-mail: info@baywood.com; Web site: http://baywood.com
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers: UCLA Loneliness Scale