Facebook Use Among African American and Hispanic Students: An Exploratory Investigation of Perceived Academic Impact

Abstract

Facebook is one of the world's leading social networking sites. It is pervasive in students' lives and can impact their academic careers in a variety of ways. However, little research exists evaluating the use of Facebook in minority academic settings. An early step in this direction is to gain an understanding of how different student demographic groups use Facebook. An interest in further assessment of Facebook's role in diverse segments of academia motivates the collection and analysis of Facebook-related data from minority serving institutions such as Historically Black Colleges or Universities (HBCUs) and Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs). This study presents the results of a comparative examination of African American students at an HBCU and Hispanic students at an HSI regarding their perceptions of Facebook use for academics. The findings reveal significant differences between the two groups. When compared to African American students, the Hispanic students use Facebook more for academics even though they perceive it to have a negative impact on academics. This perceived negative impact of Facebook is not directly translated into actual differences in self-reported GPA.