Date of Award

Fall 2010

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Sociology & Criminal Justice

Program/Concentration

Applied Sociology

Committee Director

Ingrid P. Whitaker

Committee Member

Dianne C. Carmody

Committee Member

Scott R. Maggard

Call Number for Print

Special Collections LD4331.S62 H63 2010

Abstract

The use of the internet and the activities available over the internet has continuously grown since their creation. A huge proportion of our society utilizes the internet and its available activities. Specifically, as a 2009 Pew Data memo shows over half of users age 18 and over utilize the internet for personal use. The use of user generated video sites (UGVS) is no different, as the largest user-generated video community YouTube boasted in 2009 that every minute YouTube receives ten hours of uploaded video. Given the popularity of user-generated video sites, some have raised concerns about potential negative effects that the use of sites such as YouTube may be having on the aggressive behaviors and interpersonal relations of its users. The purpose of this study is to expand the knowledge on the effects that internet activities, particularly the use of user-generated video sites, have on the individual with specific emphasis on aggressive behavior and interpersonal relations. The multivariate analysis results show that the strongest predictors of respondents' aggression score was gender; however, once observational learning was added to the model, the only significant predictor of aggression scores was observational learning. Furthermore, multiple regression examining the predictors of negative interpersonal effects indicate in the first model that post-social score is associated to higher negative interpersonal effects scores. Moreover, once the online community variable was added to the model it became the strongest predictor of higher negative interpersonal effects score. The present study suggests that scholars need to investigate further the effects of user-generated video sites on the aggressive behaviors and interpersonal relations of their users. An obvious relationship exists between the use of UGVS and ones aggression and/or interpersonal relations and as this topic begins to grow with the expanding utilization of sites like YouTube, the need to understand their effects is critical.

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In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).

DOI

10.25777/266n-f431

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