Ch 13 blog

             I like to people watch, but not as a researcher. It's more of an entertainment past time. For the sake of keeping my attention, I would have to do a "mixed method" of research.  I would probably start with the Ethnography, but when I got bored with that I would do the unobstructed method. I am critical but not very analytic when it comes to communication research.  

            Question of deception, "How do children shield themselves while telling a lie?" I would probably use multiple methods of study, but I would start with Ethnography.  This way I could go to a child care facility, or a public playground and watch the children in their natural surroundings without being disruptive. I would also do a little conversation analysis between the children to analyze personal interaction and reactions to each other, and then finish with a rhetorical criticism. I feel that any live research study should probably go back over the results and check for any missed aspect of the conversation that may have been missed.

Cultures within a society...Very Interesting

The interesting topic I found this semester is culture, and more specifically co-cultures.

       Cultures within a society that have different communication practices. In almost every community there are several smaller groups of people who communicate in different ways.   I belong to several co-cultures.  My day starts off with my family, in this culture; I am an authoritative figure and communicate as such. However, when I communicate with my parents I have to show a certain level of respect.  I then go to school where, as a student, I have to communicate my knowledge of a subject and still be open to learning more at the same time to my instructors.  I also communicate with the other peers and students, a co-culture of a school community where the latest slang and personal gestures are expected to be known and understood.   When I hang out with other military veterans, in the resource center, the expectation of general military slang and gestures are expected, and in turn I expect the same from them.

        I find it interesting that different behaviors, aneurisms, and slang terms are expected to be known depending on the co-culture you are engaging in.  There are so many different co-cultures that sometimes the terms and gestures get intermingled between cultures.  

More to discuss, but then again... maybe not :-) Have a great holiday break!

The topic I found very interesting, and wanted to discuss further was Computer Mediated Communication. It's not easy putting in eight straight hours of work every day, without small breaks. A little communication and personal interaction can make a stressful day not so bad. There has been survey after survey of how much time is spent by employees on social networking sites while they are supposed to be working. “More than half of U.S. workers waste an hour or more a day on interruptions: 60% come from electronic devices and e-mails, while the other 40% come from traditional sources, such as phone calls or chats with colleagues” (New Statistics).  I did a small survey of on my own, and asked a group of five people to track their use of social media for one-day. I found that even the most moderate use of Facebook and social media devices, still added up to a substantial amount of time. 

“Distractions cost businesses $10,790 a year per worker” (New Statistics).  Social networking can be addicting, and cause more problems for the user then they realize. The distractions of social media not only impact the employee, but the employer as well.  Between all five of my test subjects a total of an hour and 35 minutes in one day was wasted on Facebook, and hour and 20 minutes on personal e-mail and other networking sites such as Twitter or LinkedIn, two hours and 14 minutes on personal phone calls, and 115 personal text messages. By my calculations that it's five hours, 9 minutes, and 115 text messages, in one day, that these five people got paid for by the companies they work for.  A statistics company did a survey of Internet use at work, “the company looked at 13 billion URLs used by businesses in the first quarter of 2010 and found that 6.8% of all business Internet traffic goes to Facebook, which is double the amount of business traffic that goes to Google and nearly triple the amount that Yahoo gets” (Van Grove).

A few breaks here and there is not all bad, "Short and unobtrusive breaks, such as a quick surf of the internet, enables the mind to rest itself, leading to a higher total net concentration for a days' work, and as a result, increased productivity" (Skinner). So the question is, is social networking helpful or harmful? There are people out there that feel that social networking sites such as Facebook, can help co-workers, colleagues, and others within their industry. Even before social networking, employees found ways to take the same short breaks, such as needing a cigarette, so they go out with coworkers smoke and chat for 5 minutes, or needing a drink, so they would gather around the Coke machine. Employees don't need social networking sites to goof off, but social networking sites give employers an excuse and something to blame for low productivity. I believe that merit-based promotions and focusing on rewarding employees who do their jobs well is a better use of time, rather than disciplining those who don't work. A better way to encourage employee productivity is by reward not punishment. According to socialmediatoday.com the majority of employees don't feel that Facebook or other media distractions are harmful to their work.

“This informal poll revealed that out of 785 responses, just over 49% of respondents do not believe social networks decrease productivity. However, 37% admit that they feel that their online activity leads them away from their primary focus. Notably 14% aren't sure which way to lean yet” (Twitter).

            The addiction to social media starts young, and its effect on the workforce begins with the first post. It's not just adults who are affected by social media, teens entering the workforce or applying to colleges need to worry about some of the same effects. “In a 2011 survey of 359 admissions officers from top colleges, the education experts at Kaplan Test Prep learned that roughly 24% visit social networking sites such as Facebook to learn more about applicants. 20% Goggled applicants. The bottom line: an applicant's online image matters, and it hurt applicants' chances of admission in about 12% of cases” (Grove). The older a person gets, the more willpower they have to refrain from the distractions of life, in creating good habits as a young adult will make for better decisions throughout life. As young adults the amount of stimulation through social media is hard to ignore. Learning to focus on schoolwork, work, or daily priorities can be hindered by the distractions of Facebook (this is why teachers don't let friends sit together in class). The Internet has made access to distractions much easier and faster. A gives a student this sense that they are multitasking when in actuality they are being distracted and nonproductive. As an adult it might be easier to dismiss the need for idle chit chat or gossip, but humans are social, and the fear of gossip, and loss of control can compel anyone to distraction.

            “There are no sex differences in cyber-slacking, with the average male employee as likely to waste time online as the average female. On average, our respondents reported spending 1 hour and 44 minutes per day cyber-slacking” (Chamorro). I found in my small group of five, close to the same results, however my male subjects spent significantly less time than my female subjects. It may have been due to their occupation, and availability of Internet, but those who are in an office environment spent significantly more time social networking, than those who did not. There are some people who think that checking someone's Facebook update is more important than doing a job, or that the job is not very important. What they fail to understand, is that if they are slacking there is somebody who has to carry their weight. Procrastination, slacking, distractions, or anything else that you want to call it, it is all the same. Social networking good or bad, is going to be a topic of controversy until the next greatest fad comes in. People are going to do what they are going to do, and as much as we survey, analyze, and try to block social networking from the workplace, no matter what we do it will survive.

Bibliography

Chamorro-Premuzic, Ph.D., Tomas. "Cyber-distractions @ Work: How the Internet Makes Workers Happy." Cyber-distractions @ Work: How the Internet Makes Workers Happy. © Copyright 1991-2012 Sussex Publishers, LLC, 2 May 2011. Web. 1 May 2012. <http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/mr-personality/201105/cyber-distractions-work-how-the-internet-makes-workers-happy>.

Grove, Allen. "Facebook, Google and College Admissions." About.com College Admissions. About.com. Web. 1 May 2012. <http://collegeapps.about.com/od/theartofgettingaccepted/a/Facebook.htm>.

"New Statistics On Work Distractions | Facebook." New Statistics On Work Distractions | Facebook. STR8N UP Professional Organizing Services, 13 June 2011. Web. 10 May 2012. <http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=10150222993048329>.

Skinner, Carrie-Ann. "Twitter, Facebook Can Improve Work Productivity." Reviews and News on Tech Products, Software and Downloads. © 1998-2012, PCWorld Communications, Inc, 2 Apr. 2009. Web. 1 May 2012. <http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/162478/twitter_facebook_can_improve_work_productivity.html>.

"Twitter and Facebook: Productivity or Distraction?" Social Media News, Strategy, Tools, and Techniques. Social Media Today LLC © 2012, 26 Mar. 2010. Web. 1 May 2012. <http://socialmediatoday.com/index.php?q=SMC/184383>.

Van Grove, Jennifer. "Facebook Twice as Popular as Google in the Workplace [STATS]."Mashable Business. ©2005-2012 Mashable, Inc., 16 Apr. 2010. Web. 1 May 2012. <http://mashable.com/2010/04/16/facebook-at-work/>.