University study finds Facebook may be linked to lower grades
VANESSA SCHUTT
Issue date: 4/16/09 Section: News
Is your Facebook time affecting your grades here at Pacific? According to a pilot study from Ohio State University, there may be a relationship between the amount of time a student spends on the social networking site and their grade point average.
The study found that college students who use the site spend less time studying and have lower grade point averages than those students who do not use Facebook.
"We can't say that the use of Facebook leads to lower grades and less studying," said Aryn Karpinski, one of the study's authors. "But we did find a relationship there."
Karpinski and Adam Duberstein of Ohio Dominican University conducted the study, which surveyed 102 undergraduate students and 117 graduate students.
Of the 219 survey participants, some 148 said that they had signed up for a Facebook account. According to the survey, 85 percent of undergraduates used the site while slightly over half of the graduate students were Facebook users.
The survey found that it did not matter what race the participants were or if they were men or women. However, younger and full-time students were more likely to be members of the site.
The researchers also found that the link between lower grades and Facebook use existed among both the undergraduate and graduate students.
According to Karpinski, this is important because graduate students generally have at least a 3.5 grade point average. So the fact that the link exists even in the graduate population is significant.
Karpinski said that because the survey was a relatively small pilot study, the results did not necessarily mean that using Facebook would lead to lower grades.
"There may be other factors involved, such as personality traits, that link Facebook use and lower grades," Karpinski said.
The results of the study were presented at the annual meeting of the American Education Research Association, which was held on April 16 in San Diego.
The study found that college students who use the site spend less time studying and have lower grade point averages than those students who do not use Facebook.
"We can't say that the use of Facebook leads to lower grades and less studying," said Aryn Karpinski, one of the study's authors. "But we did find a relationship there."
Karpinski and Adam Duberstein of Ohio Dominican University conducted the study, which surveyed 102 undergraduate students and 117 graduate students.
Of the 219 survey participants, some 148 said that they had signed up for a Facebook account. According to the survey, 85 percent of undergraduates used the site while slightly over half of the graduate students were Facebook users.
The survey found that it did not matter what race the participants were or if they were men or women. However, younger and full-time students were more likely to be members of the site.
The researchers also found that the link between lower grades and Facebook use existed among both the undergraduate and graduate students.
According to Karpinski, this is important because graduate students generally have at least a 3.5 grade point average. So the fact that the link exists even in the graduate population is significant.
Karpinski said that because the survey was a relatively small pilot study, the results did not necessarily mean that using Facebook would lead to lower grades.
"There may be other factors involved, such as personality traits, that link Facebook use and lower grades," Karpinski said.
The results of the study were presented at the annual meeting of the American Education Research Association, which was held on April 16 in San Diego.
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