Abstract
Media has huge impact on youths and their family, and the environment of media use can be effective to children. Media devices and technologies are growing rapidly; they impact family in some ways. Whenever there are new technologies coming out, families seem to be adapting with it quickly, and it soon becomes engaging with families. It is interesting that these new technologies can get families to use it and even later on they cannot live without (Bo Peng,2014). The lines of communication within families, although declining in face-to-face interaction, have actually increased via social media. Parents and children connected on social media are ‘chatting ‘more than they would if they were in the same room (Seddon,2012). Social media are internet-based applications that build on web technology and allow the creation and exchange of user generated content. This study focuses on the different ways family members communicate on social media and how the frequency of their social media use influences the way they relate. The objectives of this study were to establish whether there are differences in what the family members communicate, how they communicate and for what purpose. Castell’s theory of network society and Time displacement theory informed this study.
The findings of the study are expected to improve quality of social media communication and avert decrease in face-to-face interactions as well as adding to the body of knowledge on social media communication. Purposive sampling was used to get the respondents. Qualitative methods were used to analyze the data. The potential impact of conducting this research is to enhance face to face interactions and positive social media communication among family members.
Key Words: Family relationships, Communication, Media, social networking sites, social media.