Facebook Data Mining
In today's digital age, social media platforms have become indispensable, and Facebook stands out as a prime example. Whether we embrace it or not, there's no denying its pervasive influence. Facebook facilitates interactions with friends and family and keeps us informed about global events, making the world feel much smaller. It's a crucial tool for online business communication, allowing businesses to maximize their reach and engagement.
The primary allure of Facebook is its long-standing role as a platform for sharing photos and videos. A Facebook page enables businesses to increase brand awareness through shared media content, effectively connecting with their audience and establishing a presence within the platform itself.
Beyond business accounts, Facebook also benefits personal bloggers and influencers. These users create engaging content that draws attention and maintains interest, adding another layer of appeal to the platform.
For regular users, Facebook has become a staple of daily life. Many people check the site repeatedly throughout the day, often out of habit or even addiction.
Since its inception in 2004, Facebook has grown to become one of the most popular social media platforms, boasting nearly two billion monthly active users and gaining five new profiles every second. Anyone over the age of 13 can join by creating a free account, allowing them to share as much personal information as they choose.
Headquarters: California, US
Established: February 2004
Founded by: Mark Zuckerberg
Facebook has a diverse user base, with approximately 52 percent of its users identifying as female and 48 percent as male. The platform remains highly engaging, with Facebook Stories being viewed by 0.6 billion people daily. In 2019, Facebook saw a remarkable statistic: every 60 seconds, 1 million people logged in. Additionally, more than 5 billion messages are posted on Facebook pages collectively each month, underscoring its significance as a major social and communication hub.
On a Facebook page, users can include a wide range of personal information such as their date of birth, hobbies and interests, education, sexual preferences, political affiliations, religious beliefs, and current employment. They can also upload photos of themselves and others, and enable other users to search for and connect with them through the platform. This extensive collection of personal data can be easily gathered or mined to analyze behavioral patterns. For instance, social researchers at universities worldwide have utilized Facebook data to study the lives and social networks of college students. Similarly, data from MySpace has been used to explore how people express emotions online and to assess youth perceptions of appropriate internet behavior.
Due to the growing use of social media data in research, many universities have established policies and procedures for handling such data. Institutional Review Boards (IRBs), which are responsible for reviewing research involving human subjects, have developed specific guidelines for internet-based research, including data mining on platforms like Facebook. These guidelines serve as institutional supplements to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) regulations governing human subjects research. As a result, universities with such policies require that research involving data mining on Facebook undergo IRB review before it can commence.
According to HHS guidelines, all research involving human subjects must be reviewed and approved by an IRB prior to starting. This requirement ensures that research is conducted ethically, with voluntary participation, appropriate risk-benefit balance, and fair inclusion and exclusion of subject populations.
