Influence of Social Networking Sites on Relationships Essay

Influence of Social Networking Sites on Relationships - Essay Example The essay "Influence of Social Networking Sites on Relationships" discusses the influence of social networking sites on relationships. A social networking site is a form of media of the digital age that helps people in the development of communities and networks. Some of the most popular examples include Facebook, Twitter, and Orkut. The system of kinship includes people who have close relationships with each other or those who are living as a unit or family. We create our own definition of family. We can decide to add and not add people depending on whether we trust them or consider them family. In this way, we actually go beyond defining kinship as just blood relationships and add such relationships to the definition that leaves a great impact on our lives. Some people believe that close relationships fall into the definition of kinship whereas some people believe that only a blood relationship is real kinship. Today, anthropology is heading towards forming new forms of kinship. Fo r example, we can find many people on Facebook who have their close friends or childhood friends as their sisters and brothers. On the other hand, many people present on Facebook have blood relationships between each other. Social networking sites, such as Facebook, also helps people in the formation of imagined communities and networks. People can form such communities where there are no boundaries, no nation states, but a place where they can find people with whom they feel good. Facebook has made people less individualistic.