Here is a link to one of the research findings I have come across which covers topics of technology and communication-oriented Internet sites and the online interaction that adolescents have. Authors Kaveri Subrahmanyam and Patricia Greenfield examine young adults' relationships with friends, boyfriends and girlfriends, strangers and even their families in the context of their online communication activities.  This article illustrates how the users of these sites are maintaining their existing relationships as well as gaining new ones.  In finding this research, I am not surprised at all by the information these two authors have presented.  There have been numerous accounts of sexual predation and Internet over-use cases that tend to be very prevalent in today's society.  This article was just reinforcing and expanding on some of the issues that many of us know today from the news media and other media outlets.  In fact there have been numerous stories about Facebook and how relationships have been ruined over its use.  ABC news posted an article titled, 'Love and Heartbreak on Facebook,' with author Zunaira Zaki explaining how "a simple click of a button can mark the beginning and end of a relationship." The fact that this issue is so widely covered, shows how important and relevant it truly is in our society today, which makes my work that much more important!

You might be asking yourself, "why is this blog important?" Well I'm here to tell you.  About a month ago, my classmates and I asked ourselves, how big of an impact does Facebook--and other social media networks like it--have on our relationship status'? In other words, how do our inquiries on Facebook translate into our everyday lives and aid or hinder the formation of relationships in the real world?  This question led to research findings of various scholarly sources that have posed the same question, that of which I find to be extremely important seeing as Facebook and Twitter seem to consume our every move as adolescents and young children.  I will use the information and research I find to formulate an answer on the issue.  So why not do a little research on the subject to find the affects, if any, on adolescent social media use?  For now, below is an image from one of the coolest sources I have found, which charts how Facebook affects its users:

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