Home⇛Journal of Interdisciplinary Perspectives⇛vol. 2 no. 12 (2024)

An Exploratory Study on Motivations and Outcomes of Academic Achievement Capitalization on Social Media

Angeline A. Paumar | Francine Faith A. Villanueva | Thea Angela R. Romero | Evelyn C. Bagaporo

Discipline: Childhood and Youth Studies

 

Abstract:

Capitalization, the process of sharing positive events to savor and relive positive moments, brings intrapersonal and interpersonal benefits to the sharer. In students' academic lives, academic achievements represent significant positive events that offer opportunities for capitalization. With the rise of social media, capitalizing on academic achievements has transitioned from traditional face-to-face interactions to digital platforms, where students increasingly share and celebrate their achievements. Given the significance of capitalization for well-being and the scarcity of research in this area, this study seeks to advance the understanding of the significance of capitalization within the context of a student's academic achievements and social media. Specifically, it aims to explore the practice of academic achievement capitalization on social media by examining the reasons for using these platforms, the motivations driving this practice, and the associated outcomes. Utilizing a qualitative exploratory research design, one-on-one semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten college students who frequently capitalize on their academic achievements. Content analysis of the interviews revealed that social media features are instrumental in facilitating the capitalization of academic achievements. Moreover, the study identified five key motivations driving this behavior: seeking validation, self-presentation, inspiring others, seeking support, and emotional expression. Consistent with existing research on capitalization, students experience predominantly positive outcomes, both interpersonal and intrapersonal, from sharing their academic achievements on social media, highlighting how digital platforms and capitalization help maximize the positive impact of these experiences. The findings provide an understanding of how and why students celebrate and showcase their academic achievements on social media, emphasizing how the capitalization of these achievements and the social media responses they receive influence their personal and social well-being.



References:

  1. Arnett, J. J. (2000). Emerging adulthood: A theory of development from the late teens through the twenties. American Psychologist, 55(5), 469–480. https://doi.org./10.1037/0003-066x.55.5.469
  2. Bierstetel, S. J. (2021). Sharing Positive Experiences on Social Media: An Investigation of Online Capitalization, Responsiveness, and Subjective Well-Being (Thesis). Wayne State University
  3. Blight, M. G., Jagiello, K., & Ruppel, E. K. (2015). ‘‘Same stuff different day:’’ A mixed method study of support seeking on Facebook. Computers in Human Behavior, 53, 366e373.  https://doi.org./10.1016/j.chb.2015.07.029
  4. Bossen, C. B., & Kottasz, R. (2020). Uses and gratifications sought by pre-adolescent and adolescent TikTok consumers. Young Consumers Insight and Ideas for Responsible Marketers, 21(4), 463–478. https://doi.org/10.1108/yc-07-2020-1186   
  5. Cherry, K., (2023). Verywell Mind. Retrieved from https://tinyurl.com/4d2u7ffy
  6. Creswell, J., & Poth, C. (2017). Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design: Choosing Among Five Approaches (4th ed.). Sage Publications
  7. Dawot, N. I. M., & Ibrahim, R. (2014). A review of features and functional building blocks of social media. Malaysian Software Engineering Conference, 177-182. https://doi.org/10.1109/MySec.2014.6986010
  8. Décieux, J. P., Heinen, A., & Willems, H. (2019). Social Media and Its Role in Friendship-driven Interactions among Young People: A Mixed Methods Study. Young, 27(1), 18-31. https://doi.org/10.1177/1103308818755516
  9. Diener, E., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2002). Very Happy People. Psychological Science, 13(1), 81–84.  https://doi.org./10.1111/1467-9280.00415
  10. Dhingra, R., & Parashar, B. (2022). Validation on social media and adolescents: a matter of self-esteem. Journal for Educators, Teachers and Trainers, 13(4). https://doi.org/10.47750/jett.2022.13.04.017
  11. Donato, S., Pagani, A. F., Parise, M., Bertoni, A. M. M., & Iafrate, R. (2014). The capitalization process in stable couple relationships: intrapersonal and interpersonal benefits. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 140, 207–211. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.04.411   
  12. Eronen, S. (2000). Achievement and Social Strategies and The Cumulation of Positive and Negative Experiences During Young Adulthood. Retrieved from https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/document  
  13. Febrian, A., & Husna, N. (2023). Increasing social media engagement through understanding the uses and gratification theory. In Nairobi, Yuliansyah, H. Jimad, R. Perdana, G. E. Putrawan, & T. Y. Septiawan (Eds.), Proceedings of the International Conference of Economics, Business, and Entrepreneur (ICEBE 2022) (Vol. 241, pp. 520–532). Atlantis Press SARL. https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-064-0_53
  14. Fredrickson B. L. (2001). The role of positive emotions in positive psychology. The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions. The American psychologist, 56(3), 218–226. https://doi.org/10.1037//0003-066x.56.3.218
  15. Fredrickson B. L. (1998). What Good Are Positive Emotions?. Review of general psychology journal of Division 1, of the American Psychological Association, 2(3), 300–319. https://doi.org/10.1037/1089-2680.2.3.300
  16. Gable, S. L., Reis, H. T., Impett, E. A., & Asher, E. R. (2004). What do you do when things go right? The intrapersonal and interpersonal benefits of sharing positive events. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 87(2), 228–245.  https://doi.org./10.1037/0022-3514.87.2.228
  17. Gable, S. L., & Reis, H. R. (2010). Good news! Capitalizing on positive events in an interpersonal context. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 42, 195e257.  https://doi.org./10.1016/S0065-2601(10)42004-3.
  18. Gentzler, A. L., Morey, J. N., Palmer, C. A., & Yi, C. Y. (2012). Young adolescents’ responses to positive events. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 33(5), 663–683. https://doi.org/10.1177/0272431612462629
  19. Goffman, E. (1959). The presentation of self in everyday life. Anchor Books.Olawale, S. R., Chinagozi, O. G., & Joe, O. N. (2023). Exploratory research design in management science: A review of literature on conduct and Application. International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, 7(4), 1384–1395. https://doi.org/10.47772/ijriss.2023.7515
  20. Krenn, B., Würth, S., & Hergovich, A. (2013). The impact of feedback on goal setting and task performance. Swiss Journal of Psychology, 72(2), 79–89. https://doi.org/10.1024/1421-0185/a000101
  21. Krogh, S. C. (2022). ‘You can’t do anything right’: How adolescents experience and navigate the achievement imperative on social media. Young, 31(1), 5–21. https://doi.org/10.1177/11033088221111224   
  22. Lambert, N. M., Gwinn, A. M., Baumeister, R. F., Strachman, A., Washburn, I. J., Gable, S. L., & Fincham, F. D. (2012). A boost of positive affect. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 30(1), 24–43. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407512449400
  23. Langston, C. A. (1994). Capitalizing on and coping with daily-life events: Expressive responses to positive events. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67(6), 1112–1125. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.67.6.1112
  24. McCay-Peet, L., & Quan-Haase, A. (2016). A model of social media engagement: user profiles, gratifications, and experiences. In Springer eBooks (pp. 199–217). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-27446-1_9
  25. Metzler, A., & Scheithauer, H. (2019). Association of Self-Presentational Strategies on Facebook and Positive Feedback in Adolescence – a Two-Study approach. International Journal of Developmental Science, 12(3–4), 189–206. https://doi.org/10.3233/dev-180246  
  26. Meier, A., Gilbert, A., Börner, S., & Possler, D. (2020). Instagram Inspiration: How upward comparison on Social network sites can Contribute to Well-Being. Journal of Communication, 70(5), 721–743.  https://doi.org/10.1093/joc/jqaa025
  27. Noon, E. J., Maes, C., Karsay, K., & Vandenbosch, L. (2023). Making the Good Better? Investigating the Long-Term Associations Between Capitalization on Social Media and Adolescents’ Life Satisfaction. Media Psychology, 27(2), 161–185. https://doi.org/10.1080/15213269.2023.2227941
  28. Reis, H. T., Smith, S. M., Carmichael, C. L., Caprariello, P. A., Tsai, F., Rodrigues, A. E., & Maniaci, M. R. (2010). Are you happy for me? How sharing positive events with others provides personal and interpersonal benefits. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 99(2), 311–329. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0018344
  29. Rimé, B., Bouchat, P., Paquot, L., & Giglio, L. (2020). Intrapersonal, interpersonal, and social outcomes of the social sharing of emotion. Current Opinion in Psychology, 31, 127–134. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2019.08.02 4
  30. Rimé, B., Mesquita, B., Boca, S., & Philippot, P. (1991). Beyond the emotional event: Six studies on the social sharing of emotion. Cognition and Emotion, 5(5–6), 435–465. https://doi.org/10.1080/02699939108411052
  31. Rungduin, T. (2021). A Proposed Protocol on the Disclosure of Sensitive Issues in Research Data Gathering: Inputs to Research Ethics Review. PNU Policy Brief Series, 5(1), 1-5. https://tinyurl.com/mscxn8y9
  32. Schreurs, L., & Vandenbosch, L. (2021a). The development and validation of measurement instruments to address interactions with positive social media content. Media Psychology, 25(2), 262–289. https://doi.org/10.1080/15213269.2021.1925561  
  33. Schunk, D. H., & DiBenedetto, M. K. (2020). Motivation and social cognitive theory. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 60, 101832. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2019.101832
  34. Shao, G. (2009). Understanding the appeal of user‐generated media: a uses and gratification perspective. Internet Research, 19(1), 7–25. https://doi.org/10.1108/10662240910927795   
  35. Vițelar, A. (2019). Like me: Generation Z and the use of social media for personal branding. Management Dynamics in the Knowledge Economy, 7(2), 257-268.  https://doi.org/10.25019/MDKE/7.2.07
  36. Vranken, I., Schreurs, L., Noon, E. J., & Vandenbosch, L. (2023). Understanding the relations between exposure to the positive self-portrayals of others on social media and emerging adults’ mental health during a COVID-19 imposed lockdown. Cyberpsychology Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace, 17(1). https://doi.org/10.5817/cp2023-1-5
  37. Watkins, T. (2021). Workplace interpersonal capitalization: employee reactions to coworker positive event disclosures. Academy of Management Journal, 64(2), 537–561. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2018.1339
  38. Whiting, A., & Williams, D. (2013). Why people use social media: a uses and gratifications approach. Qualitative Market Research, 16(4), 362-369. https://doi.org/10.1108/QMR-06-2013-0041  
  39. Zheng, Z., & Mustappha, S. M. (2022). A Literature Review on the Academic Achievements of College Students. Journal of Education and Social Sciences, 20(1), 11-18. https://www.jesoc.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/JESOC20_12.pdf

Tools


Copyright © 2024  KITE Digital Educational Solutions |  Exclusively distributed by CE-Logic