Facebook may be perpetuating existing social inequalities: Study
New York, July 25 : People who are unemployed, single and young may be considering to deactivate their Facebook account, according to a study which says that the social media giant may be perpetuating existing social inequalities.
The findings showed that people who had looked for work within the last four weeks were more likely to have deactivated their Facebook accounts -- eliminating a potential resource in their job search, the researchers said.
"Facebook, rather than acting as a democratizer, may be perpetuating existing social inequalities," said Eric Baumer, from the Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
Older adults, males, from a lower income household, more socially conservative, or those who weigh less are most likely to have never had an account on the social media site.
On the other hand, people who are younger, seeking employment, or unmarried are considering deactivation, while the current users include the middle-aged, females, higher-income earners, married and ideologically liberal.
"My analysis reveals that individuals from lower-income households are less likely ever to have had a Facebook account," Baumer said.
"Yet, social networks have been shown to play an important role in fostering 'social capital', which can be leveraged for accomplishing certain tasks, including securing employment," he noted.
For the study, presented at the 2018 ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems in Canada, Baumer analysed data from 1,000 US households gleaned from a phone survey of adults 18 years or older.
Through probabilistic modelling, the team sought to identify predictors for the four different types of Facebook use and non-use.
Of the factors he explored, eight emerged as predictors of use and non-use: age, gender, marital status, whether the respondent had looked for work in the past four weeks, household income, race, weight and social ideology (liberal to conservative).
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Hubballi: Gym trainer assaulted; police say clash due to personal reasons
Hubballi: A gym trainer was allegedly assaulted by a group of people following accusations of sexual assault and ‘love jihad’, even as both families involved in the case traded serious allegations.
According to police, a group of individuals went to the residence of Sameer Mulla, a resident of Vijayanagar, and questioned him over his friendship with a woman he had met at a gym. The situation escalated into a clash, during which he was allegedly dragged away and assaulted. He sustained minor injuries and was admitted to KIMS hospital.
N. Shashikumar said that after this incident, members from Sameer’s side went to the woman’s house, leading to another clash in which one person was injured. “It was wrong for groups to go near houses. We will take necessary legal action,” he said, adding that the incident appears to have arisen from personal reasons. Police have taken some individuals into custody and are investigating the matter.
Sameer Mulla was reportedly thrashed by a group of Sangh Parivar activists and later handed over to police at the Old Hubballi Police Station after relatives of the woman and members of Hindu organisations gathered at his residence in Rajnagar.
The woman’s family alleged assault and threats from Sameer’s relatives at their Vikas Nagar residence.
Meanwhile, Sameer’s family denied the allegations and accused the woman’s relatives and others of assaulting and kidnapping him. His sister said the two had been in a relationship for three years and that the allegations were baseless.
Police said statements from both sides have been recorded, and a detailed investigation is underway. Sameer remains hospitalised, and appropriate legal action will be taken based on findings.
In a video statement shared on social media, the 20-year-old woman alleged that Sameer had given her an intoxicant, recorded videos without her consent, and sexually assaulted her. She lodged a complaint alleging rape and blackmail, which police are investigating.
In another video, Sameer denied the allegations, claiming the video was recorded with consent and that the accusations were made under pressure.
Former Hubballi-Dharwad Urban Development Authority (HDUDA) chairman Nagesh Kalburgi termed the incident a serious matter and urged police to take strict action.
Police said the case involves multiple complaints from both sides, and further investigation is underway.
