For student development theory to fit into the context of this dissertation research project, it is crucial to focus on the academic environment as a web of interaction and, more importantly, as “webs of learning opportunities.” Benjamin et al. (2007) looked at the first weeks of the first year of college as the foundation of …
The plan for this research project will follow a linear triangulation progression, as opposed to a composite triangulation progression. A linear triangulation progression allows the first method to be thoroughly analyzed before beginning the second method. A composite triangulation progression would attempt to complete all of the methods around the same time frame and would …
The reason that I want to use a triangulation method is that I believe that the convergence of different methods can lead to a better understanding of the research and the “gaps of knowledge.” Triangulation studies are defined as a “comparison of two or more forms of evidence with respect to an object of research …
The purpose of my dissertation will be to observe incoming “traditional freshmen” (e.g. 18- to-20 year old students coming to college for the first time) at three Midwestern universities whose hometowns are small towns, where the population is less than 5,000 residents, and see how those freshmen use Facebook as a coping mechanism. Facebook is …
As for the breakdown of the rest of the dissertation, the paper will break into the thematic and methodological issues present during the course of the research process. I believe the discussion will focus on how each method helps add to the breadth of the overall research project. The first chapter of this project will …
After reviewing the literature associated with this field of study, it suggested to me to look at online social networks from the online-offline dynamic. The online-offline dynamic is defined as the ability of an online social network to develop and maintain relationships and transfer those relationships to the real world environment. Therefore, it seemed that …
I decided to look beyond the fanastic events that can cause users of Facebook to create at deeper level of connection. After finishing my simple analysis of the Virginia Tech shooting, I decided to look at another event that would cause a great deal of stress to students, their first year at college I decided …