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Why Use Facebook? a Uses & Gratifications Study of Generation X

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Why Use Facebook? a Uses & Gratifications Study of Generation X Why Use Facebook? A Uses & Gratifications Study of Generation X in the UK by Christopher Munns Media & Communication Studies: Culture, Collaborative Media & Creative Industries Master’s Programme (One-Year) Thesis (Course Code: KK644B) Supervisor: Erin E. Cory, PhD Date: November 2018 Document Version: 2.1 (Final Archive Edition) Why Use Facebook? A Uses & Gratifications Study of Generation X in the UK Christopher Munns ABSTRACT This paper explores the use of the social networking site, Facebook, by the Generation X cohort (those born 1966-1980 inclusive) currently living in the United Kingdom (identified as a somewhat under-studied group to date). Utilising a ‘Uses & Gratifications Theory’ and ‘(Media) Dependency Theory’ approach and the quantitative empirical data collection method of an extensive online ‘self-fill’ questionnaire, a total of 233 individuals from this cohort voluntarily provided the sought-after information, with data collected during early September 2018. An expanded version of Denis McQuail, Jay G. Blumler and J.R. Brown’s 1972 media gratifications groups/descriptors is proposed and used for this paper’s analysis of results (see section 6.2.4) while a new single media term,‘online collaborative network’, is recommended by the author as an alternative to current myriad of ‘social media’, ‘social networking [site]’ and ‘collaborative media’ all used for the likes of Facebook (see section 9.2.2). Key project results suggest that the UK Generation X cohort spend an average of 75 minutes per day using Facebook; that the most-utilised access method is via a mobile phone (89.7%); that the top two ‘uses’ of the social network are both passive ones (‘Scrolling through the homepage News Feed’ and ‘Spending time viewing Photos/Videos uploaded by others’) and that the top three gratifications obtained from Facebook use are ‘Contact with Friends’, ‘Contact with Family’ and (to) ‘Pass Time’. Additionally, results provide an interesting and potentially shocking overview of exclusive dependency upon Facebook for the satisfaction of particular media needs, including the maintenance of contact with certain friends (87.6%) and certain family members (61.4%) and, worryingly, as an only source of news (15%). Keywords: Facebook, Social Media, Collaborative Media, Social Networking, Uses & Gratifications Theory, (Media) Dependency Theory, Generation X, UK. Countable Words: 16,998 (#) Pages: 119 Sources: 95 (# Introduction to Conclusions, excluding Tables/Captions) Media and Communication Studies: Culture, Collaborative Media and Creative Industries (Malmö University) Page: 2 Why Use Facebook? A Uses & Gratifications Study of Generation X in the UK Christopher Munns CONTENTS ABSTRACT......................................................................................................................2 CONTENTS......................................................................................................................3 LIST OF TABLES.............................................................................................................4 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.............................................................................................5 PREFACE..........................................................................................................................6 1. Introduction...................................................................................................................7 2. Research Questions......................................................................................................12 3. Background..................................................................................................................13 4. Literature Review........................................................................................................30 5. Theoretical Framework................................................................................................40 6. Methodology & Method..............................................................................................46 7. Ethics...........................................................................................................................52 8. Results & Analysis.......................................................................................................54 9. Conclusions.................................................................................................................86 REFERENCES................................................................................................................92 APPENDICES...............................................................................................................106 Media and Communication Studies: Culture, Collaborative Media and Creative Industries (Malmö University) Page: 3 Why Use Facebook? A Uses & Gratifications Study of Generation X in the UK Christopher Munns LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Key Academic and Research Organisation Definitions of the Generations.....................9 Table 2: Final Online Questionnaire Design...............................................................................48 Table 3: Newly-Developed 'Gratifications Obtained' Measurement System for SNSs...............50 Table 4: Birth Year of Research Participants..............................................................................54 Table 5: Home Computer Availability as a Child........................................................................55 Table 6: Reasons for Initially Joining Facebook (Gratifications Sought)....................................57 Table 7: Facebook Usage Compared to 12 Months Previous......................................................60 Table 8: Technology Used to Access Facebook..........................................................................61 Table 9: Facebook Activities Engaged In (Facebook ‘Uses’).....................................................63 Table 10: Gratifications Obtained from Facebook Use...............................................................67 Table 11: Gratifications Obtained from Facebook Use by Gratifications Group........................68 Table 12: Top Reasons for Continued Facebook Use (Gratifications Sought/Obtained).............69 Table 13: Top Reasons for Continued Facebook Use by Gratifications Group...........................70 Table 14: Exclusive Dependency on Facebook for certain Tasks/Activities...............................72 Table 15: Social Media Used (in addition to Facebook).............................................................75 Table 16: Facebook Activities/Uses (Heavy/Light + Male/Female Users).................................80 Table 17: Gratifications Obtained from Facebook Use (Heavy/Light + Male/Female Users).....82 Table 18: Exclusive Dependency on Facebook (Heavy/Light + Male/Female Users)................83 Table 19: Other Key Categories (Heavy/Light + Male/Female Users).......................................84 Table 20: Facebook Development, Milestones & Registered Monthly Users: 2003-2018........107 Table 21: Key Historical Media Dates for 'Generation X' Individuals in the UK.....................108 Media and Communication Studies: Culture, Collaborative Media and Creative Industries (Malmö University) Page: 4 Why Use Facebook? A Uses & Gratifications Study of Generation X in the UK Christopher Munns LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Illustration 1: Generational Characteristics & Life Influencers..................................................14 Illustration 2: Profile of an Average/Example ‘Generation X’ Individual in the UK..................15 Illustration 3: The 'ZX Spectrum' Personal Computer, launched in 1982...................................16 Illustration 4: The look of ‘Prestel’.............................................................................................18 Illustration 5: Percentage of UK Households with Internet Access by Year...............................20 Illustration 6: Launch Dates of Major Global Social Networking Sites, 1997-2006...................23 Illustration 7: The early look of Friends Reunited......................................................................24 Illustration 8: How 'TheFacebook' looked in its early days........................................................25 Illustration 9: Facebook's Welcome Screen in 2018...................................................................27 Illustration 10: Maslow's Hierarchy of Human Needs................................................................41 Illustration 11: Duration of Facebook Membership....................................................................56 Illustration 12: Reported Facebook Usage Frequency................................................................59 Illustration 13: Interest in Facebook's Forthcoming Semi-Confidential 'Dating' Service............71 Illustration 14: Past Consideration of Facebook Account Deletion due to Privacy Concerns.....73 Illustration 15: Previous Friends Reunited Social Network Membership...................................76 Illustration 16: Gender Split of Research Respondents...............................................................77 Illustration 17: Reported Relationship Status of Research Respondents.....................................78 Illustration 18: Summary of Research Questions and Findings/Results......................................87 Media and Communication Studies: Culture, Collaborative Media and Creative Industries (Malmö University) Page: 5 Why Use Facebook? A Uses
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