Toward usages, friendships and behaviors on Facebook : an exploratory study
Résumé
The social networking outstanding increase during the last five years has been so impressive that this phenomena has become a source of particular interest for both researchers and managers. However, little research has investigated current social network usages through in depth qualitative research. Considering this gap, our research objective is to better understanding how web users use Facebook, how friends networks are created and their meaning related to off line/on line relations, how, when and why Facebook users like, comment, share or tag. Whereas prior researches essentially focused on adolescents' and young adults' behavior on Facebook, we identify both private and professional uses of this social network. We confirm the blurring boundaries between public and private communication, and add some light on the use of two major Facebook' functions, i.e. the comment and the "like" button.