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Ashley Ontiberos Amy Becker Eng103 Composition II November 17, 2011 The Facebook Addiction Did you know that approximately one in every thirteen people in the world have a Facebook account, according to Digitalbuzzblog. com. In 2010, Facebook was the most-searched term on the internet. With these statistics, I was surprised to learn that there is a disorder known as the Facebook Addiction Disorder or FADS. I didn’t realize Facebook was such a big problem until I began my research. With all the craze of Facebook or social networking, one can’t help but wonder what the ill effects of it really are.
Today, In this cause and effect essay I want to inform you about how Facebook can have many negative effects on your job, free time and health. According to research done by Oregonbusinessreport. com, forty-five percent of employers screen social networks such as Facebook, before considering potential employees. This was research conducted in 2009. I am certain that the numbers have risen because of the number of people who regularly sign up as members of Facebook. When employers screen photos and posts they are looking for any kind or provocative and inappropriate photos.
Additionally, bad-mouthing previous employers, poor communications skills is also another thing they look for before considering applicants for an interview or employment. Furthermore, even after a job has been granted, employers can still monitor their employee’s Facebook account. A recent example is of a New Jersey first grade teacher who lost her job over a post on Facebook. On March 28th, the teacher posted a status saying, “I’m not a teacher, I’m a warden for future criminals. ” The status was forwarded to her school board and a judge ruled that she should lose her job because this comment was inexcusable.
More people have lost their jobs over Facebook usage in recent years because most employers ban the use of Facebook at work. According to Royalgazetteonline. com, one third of employers say that Facebook is a major distraction at work. Most employers don’t block the site but it is a rule that employees are not allowed on social networking sites while clocked in to work. Based on research as indicated in this essay, Facebook has lots of negatives effects for employees if they choose not to control what they say.
Forty-eight percent of Facebook users between the ages of eighteen and thirty-four, check their Facebook’s as their first priority each morning. About twenty-eight percent of that number, check it from their smartphones before getting out of bed, according to Digitalbuzzblog. com. According to Addictioninfo. org, Rob Bedi, a registered psychologist and assistant professor at the University of Victoria says, “There is a difference between procrastination and addiction, if you’re losing assignment time to Facebook use then it’s a problem. Facebook has become such an addiction to people that there are 155 Facebook Addicts anonymous groups on Facebook alone according to Addictioninfo. org. Hubspage. com also gives a list for people to read through that shows symptoms of Facebook addictions. Spending large amounts of time on Facebook is not what you would consider a “part-time hobby”. Many people are losing out on a lot of free time that could be used more productively. People who are Facebook addicts choose not to go to the gym. Also they spend less and less time with family and friends to be on Facebook.
Facebook addicts can definitely own up to lots of the examples given and have a very difficult time deciding when to log out. “Is Facebook turning teens into narcissistic, antisocial outcast? “, was a question asked in an article on CBSnews. com. A leading social network researcher, Dr. Larry D. Rosen, responds with a yes to the question. He believes that kids can develop greater empathy and it provides ways for shy kids to socialize but it also causes mental health problems. According to Dr. Rosen, teens who use Facebook show more aggression, mania, anxiety and depression.
With these issues already occurring, it can lead to more serious health problems. Young people are turning down opportunities to socialize with their friends at the movies, malls and other hang outs. Instead they choose to hang out online. Recent health studies have also linked Facebook usage to Cancer. According to Dailymail. co. uk, Facebook can increase the risk of serious health problem by reducing the number of face-to face contact people have with people. The way in which Facebook users isolate hemselves from society can alter the way genes work, upset immune response, hormone levels, the function of arteries, and also impair mental performance, according to Dr. Aric Sigman. With these serious alterations, it could lead to more people getting cancer, heart disease, having a stroke or even developing dementia. I have informed you about some of the negative effects that Facebook can have on a person’s job, free time and health. It is so easy to access Facebook with smartphones or laptops which offer internet usage almost anywhere. Facebook has invaded our lives in an unimaginable and unexpected way.
When deciding whether or not to log into Facebook perhaps it would be a good idea to think more productive things you could do. Work Cited Associated Press. “Teacher should be fired over Facebook ‘warden’ post, judge rules . ” Chicago Sun Times 08 11 2011. Chicago Sun-Times. 09 11 2011. Associated Press. 11/17/2011 <http://www. suntimes. com/news/nation/8698139-418/teacher-should be-fired-over-facebook-warden-post-judge-rules. html>. Daily Mail Reporter. How using Facebook could raise your risk of cancer. 02/19/2009 Mail Online. 11/17/11 <http://www. dailymail. co. k/health/article-1149207/How-usingFacebook-raise-risk-cancer. html>. Digital Buzz Blog. Facebook Statistics, Stats & Facts For 2011 . 01/18/2001. 11/17/2011 <http://www. digitalbuzzblog. com/facebook-statistics-stats-facts-2011/>. Grasz, Jennifer. 45% Employers use Facebook-Twitter to screen job candidates. 08/24/09 Oregon Business Report. 11/17/2001 <http://oregonbusinessreport. com/2009/08/45-employers-use-facebook-twitter to-screen-job-candidates/>. Hubs, Pages. Negative Effects of Facebook Addiction. 2011 HubsPages. 11/17/2011 <http://thurs. hubpages. om/hub/Negative-Effects-of-Facebook-Addiction>. Jaslow, Ryan. Facebook tied to poor mental health in teens: What parents must know. 08/09/11 CBS News. 11/17/11 <http://www. cbsnews. com/8301-504763_162 20090061-10391704. html>. Pope, Danielle. Potential Facebook addiction. 01/28/2008 AddictionInfo. org. 11/17/11 <http://www. addictioninfo. org/articles/2171/1/Potential-Facebook addiction/Page1. html>. Royal Gazette Online. It’s official: Facebook is a major distraction at work. 06/28/11 Royal Gazette Online. 11/17/2011 <http://www. royalgazette. com/article/20110628/BUSINESS05/706289929/-1>.