Vedantam, 2006), Americans Are More Socially Isolated Research Proposal

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Vedantam, 2006), Americans are more socially isolated than they were in 1985, with the number of people with whom they can confide dropping by one third, from three close confidents to two. American is viewed as a fragmented society with splinters of people growing ever more distant with regard to intimate social ties. Despite the benefits of close social connections, people report being alone, feeling alone, and suffering alone in bad times.

The ability of digital social networks to support substantive civic engagement is more than a test of the media's capacity to convey and renew civic engagement -- it is also a test of the transformative capacity of social networks with regard to sustained interest and action. A criticism of communications and information technology (CIT) -- which includes digital social networking -- is its transience and churn. Engaging digital communication tends to cater to the tastes of an audience with "above the fold" attention spans, and not to those who read The New Yorker or The Economist from cover to cover. In much the same vein as those who were fearful that the automobile would undermine intellectual endeavors in 1937 Middletown, Indiana, the Internet has had its naysayers. The general fear is that the virtual, digital worlds will eclipse face-to-face communication and the sort of authentic engagement that prompts civic engagement will flounder.

In his report for The Aspen Institute, Lasica (2008) provides evidence that mobile media is not, contrary to what the public seems to believe, contributing to the dissolution of the civic bonds of our society. In fact, Lasica (2008) makes the case that mobile digital technology is offering a whole new gamut of opportunities to deepen and broaden community ties, whether they are based in virtual or brick-and-mortar worlds. Social trends of every type are subject to variance dependent upon factors and forces that are the bedrock of social science: Age, ethnicity, gender, social status, economic status, education level, residential region, etc.

Smith, et al. (2010) argue that the Internet is not a "great equalizer," and that it is not changing the socio-economic character of civic engagement in the United States. In fact, Smith et al. (2010) suggest that the patterns that have traditionally been seen in civic engagement are being replicated in the online environment, as "the well-to-do and well-educated are more likely than those less well off to participate in online political activities such as emailing a government official, signing an online petition or making a political contribution" (Smith, et al., 2010).

Putnam (2007) argues that -- short-term, ethnic diversity tends to reduce social capital and social solidarity. Certainly, this phenomenon was demonstrated over the last several centuries as waves of immigrants were woven into the fabric of a rapidly changing America. In the United States, heterogeneity has tended to produce neighborhoods characterized by lower levels of trust, less altruism, reduced levels of community cooperation, and fewer friendships overall (Putnam, 2007). The effects of ethnic diversity in the short-term and the long-term are essential to a discussion of civic engagement, particularly as immigrants may de facto come from countries in which civic engagement is seriously hampered. It almost goes without saying that marginalized citizens, whether due to ethnic origin or socio-economic status, exhibit very different profiles of civic engagement than their more prosperous, educated, or influential age and gender peers. But it is important to explore these disparities, as Gibson et al. (2007; 2008) have because there is very little recognition of the magnitude of the differences.

The civic engagement of young people, in particular, through digital media has been documented and appears to be rising. Though social media monitoring indicates strong generational differences, less attention has been given to the digital disparities between members of the same generation. Gibson, et al. (2008) focuses on pathways to civic engagement for those youth who are not college-bound, and how the pathways differ from those of same-age peers who are enrolled in college or very likely will be. Gibson's work adds a dimension to the study of civic engagement that is typically overlooked -- how do those who need help themselves? The changing economic, political, and social landscape will impose demands for robust civic engagement if those who are youth today are to mediate complex challenges. Gibson et al. (2008) offer a range of strategies to support the development of needed skills from early childhood into young adulthood.

The literature points to disparities in way the digital social media is utilized for civic engagement.

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As the corpus of research expands in this new field of social digital networking, it is critical to understand the dynamics that impact the phenomenon -- and its articulation across the social groups that make up American society.

The purpose of the research is to explore the levels of civic engagement attained by users of digital social media. The study will employ a quantitative research approach by utilizing surveys with closed-end questions. The proposed research will study the patterns of civic engagement of middle class and upper middle class users of digital social media, seeking particularly to understand how digital social networks motivate, compel, or discourage the transformation of civic interest into civic engagement. Three hypotheses have emerged from a review of the literature: (1) Participation in digital social networks does not support the transform of civic interest into active civic engagement for ordinary or quotidian civic issues; (2) Participation in digital social networks supports the transform of civic interest into active civic engagement for atypical civic issues; and (3) Social capital generated by participation in digital social networks is primarily focused on self-interests rather than civic interests.

Method

Research Design

The proposed research design is undergirded by a positivist philosophy that the quantitative survey methods should produce data that is objective and has been obtained through empirically sound procedures. The design is driven in large part by the proposal's reliance on a survey developed and used by the Pew Institute in their American Life Project research.

The literature regarding the use of digital social media for civic engagement increasingly highlights research exploring the differences among user groups according to their social status, economic levels, education levels, age, and topical interests. There is a dearth of research related to cross-generational differences within those categories, and what research is available focuses on the specific ways in which the generations use digital social media -- for instance, posting to social networks, contributing information to forums, or solely consuming content. Where civic engagement via digital social networks has been studied, the emphasis was on the continuum of types of civic engagement or political action for which digital social media platforms were employed. In fact, the studies have treated online and offline political activity as two separate data sets, and no real attempts have been made, as of yet, to follow the conversion of online activity (defined in this proposal as civic interest) to offline activity (defined in this proposal under the umbrella of active civic engagement).

The relationship of income and education to political activities is relatively straightforward -- civic interest and civic engagement tend to increase as income and education increase. Compared to these relations, the relationship among age and political activities is complex. Young adults -- aged 18 to 24 years of age -- are least likely to take part in offline political activity, but are more likely to use the Internet. For the population as a whole, online political activity occurs less for people who would be considered in the "seniors" group and the young adult deficit falls away. This difference appears to be more a function of the relative rates of Internet use than levels of civic interest or civic engagement. If the data set is only those with high levels of Internet use within each age cohort, the pattern of less political activity for young adults and substantially more political activity for older adults holds true. This proposal will examine intra-familial patterns of civic interest, civic engagement, and associated digital social network participation, and examine how different types of civic issues are related to civic interest -- as expressed on social digital networks -- and offline civic engagement.

Data Collection Plan

Hypothesis #1: Participation in digital social networks does not ordinarily support the transform of civic interest into active civic engagement for civic issues. Data collection for this hypothesis will focus on three main questions: (1) Does a preoccupation with the narrow self-focused objectives through digital social networks impinge upon users' inclination to pursue civically important action?; (2) Does the click and dismiss functionality of digital social media negatively influence meaningful follow-up and real world engagement in civic affairs?; and (3) Is the social capital necessary for influence in civic affairs is generated through digital social networks.

Hypothesis #2: Participation in digital social networks supports the transform of civic interest into active civic engagement for atypical civic issues. Data collection for this hypothesis will focus.....

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