Perceived Social Support and Facebook Use Among Adolescents

Literature Review

Social related factors have been considered among crucial predictors of Facebook use. For instance, Cheung et al. (2010) hypothesized that the usage of online social networks was an intentional social action. They explained the phenomenon through adapting the social influence and social presence theories. In this regard, the presence of other was considered the most important feature attracting users to use Facebook, particularly for those who use Facebook for communication purposes. Similarly, Baker and White (2010) adopted the theory of planned behavior (Ajzen, 1991) to predict Australian adolescents’ use of social networks. The theory accounts for the influences in individuals’ complex behaviors and suggests that intentions are the primary predictors of behaviors. That is, the likelihood of engagement in a specific behavior increases when the intention and the motivation captured by that intention are stronger. Support was found for the theory in predicting frequent engagement in social networks.