by Christopher Kendalls

Created on: September 21, 2010

Before social networking was the norm people used to create social networks using a process known as socialization.  Socialization is the process of inheriting norms, customs, and ideologies.  Social networking is a way to use computer networks to achieve the objectives of socialization.  The thing about social networking, is that it has always existed as introverts such as nerds and other social outcasts would use the technology to communicate because of their fear of face to face communication.  Even now, I can speak with people that I normally would never speak to through social networks because social networking creates an environment where people want to speak with those they would not otherwise speak to in real life.  There is an excitement and an enthusiasm and novelty to speaking with someone through a computer that otherwise would not exist, and this is part of the reason why social networking is as popular as it is today.

Earlier attempts at creating social networks often revolved around a single purpose.  People met up with a purpose in mind or to achieve particular goals.  Social networks were often the byproduct and the result of what happened when individuals went to a single site for purposes such as dating, pen pal type, long distance relationships, ecommerce, answering questions and giving answers, or sharing information.  You had sites like Craigslist, where people could give feedback on employers that were looking for jobs, and there were message boards, where people could discuss topics in the news.

It was not until MySpace became popular and the term Social Networking was used that people realized that you could use computer for the implicit purpose of meeting other people.  Although people had been communicating online for years, it was always thought that one needed to have a purpose in mind.  For example men and women would only talk online through a dating site, and a lot of the energy that was put into them speaking with each other dealt heavily with the idea of making themselves into a fantasy for that other person.  There was a direct connection between dating in real life, and dating online.

With today's social networks people are actually using the Internet for the mere purpose of meeting other people, self-actualization, narcissism, insecurities and other consequences of friendship are now seen online.  The biggest example of this is Facebook, where people tell others

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