Employment Eligibility and Social NetworksDoes the info online affect one’s ability to be hired?

Zachary BuracFaculty Advisor: Aimee Lau

Introduction

• As electronic social media is more commonly used, information relative to personal whereabouts and social life are easier to access.• Past research suggests that a variety of actions,

traits, and characteristics greatly affect the perception of job candidates.• Awareness of Society (Peluchette, 2008)• Organization/Time Management (Hwang, 2004)

Introduction

• A previous study suggests that the information on our social networking sites does influence other people’s perspectives about our professionalism and performance in the work place.• (Bohnert, 2010)

Purpose and Hypothesis

• Purpose: to determine if the information found on social networking sites positively or negatively affects perception of eligibility for a job opening.• Hypothesis: Participants will consider the

applicant described in the Professional Profile as the individual most suited for the position, and the applicant described in the Non-Professional Profile as the individual least suited for the position.

Method: Participants

• Total Number of Participants: 40• 20 male 20 female

• Subject Characteristics:• Race/Ethnicity

• Caucasian-33• Hispanic-4• Asian-American-1• Other-2

• Age• Avg- 19.59 , Standard Deviation- 1.39

Method: Materials• Instruments:• Created 3 surveys containing 15 questions each. • Each survey represented one particular style or

category of social networking profiles.• (1-Strongly Disagree to 5- Strongly Agree)

• Example Questions:• P1Q14) John avoids using offensive or vulgar

language• P2Q14) John avoids vulgar language, but stresses

his displeasure with friends and family• P3Q14) John’s posts pertain to his dislikes and his

participation in underage drinking

Method: Procedures• Step 1: Participants received an informed

consent form via projector.• Step 2: Participants completed the 3 self

created surveys• Step 3: Participants completed a short answer

essay was given which asked participants to rank profiles in order of which they would be most and least likely to hire and to briefly explain what helped guide their decision.• Step 4: A Debriefing Statement was handed

out to each individual who completed the survey upon their exit.

Results: Survey 1• A t-test was run for all 15 survey items on

Survey 1 comparing men & women’s reaction• All the following are questions from the survey

with significant results:• -Q4- t(40)=-1.23,p<.05• Men (M=3.35,SD=1.09) Women (M=3.75, SD=.97)

• -Q5- t(40)=-1.10,p<.05• Men (M=3.70, SD=1.03) Women (M=4.05, SD=1.00)

• -Q13- t(40)=-1.94,p<.05• Men (M=3.90, SD=1.25) Women (M=4.55, SD=.83)

• -Q14- t(40)=-2.30,p<.05• Men (M=3.80, SD= 1.40) Women (M=4.60, SD=.68)

Results: Survey 2

• Significant items listed below

• -Q7- t(40)=1.67,p<.05• Men (M=3.55, SD=.83) Women (M=3.00, SD=1.22)

• -Q11- t(400=1.36,p<.05• Men (M=3.50, SD=1.10) Women (M=3.10, SD=.72)

Results: Survey 3• Significant items listed below

• -Q2- t(40)=2.48,p<.05• Men (M=1.85,SD=.99) Women (M=1.25, SD=.44)

• -Q4- t(40)=2.85,p<.05• Men (M=2.20, SD=1.20) Women (M=1.35, SD=.59)

• -Q8- t(40)=2.15,p<.05• Men (M=2.20, SD=1.32) Women (M=1.45, SD=.83)

• -Q9- t(40)=1.02,p<.05• Men (M=1.65, SD=1.18) Women (M=1.35, SD=.59)

Results• At the end of the surveys there was a short answer

section asking participants to rank their choice (1-3) of which applicant was most eligible for the job. They were asked to give a brief reasoning for their selections.

1. Professional Profile – 272. Middle Road Profile – 133. Unprofessional Profile – 0• Participants cited reasons such as foreseen maturity,

small amount of use of social networking sites, proper grammar usage, and avoidance of vulgar or abusive language as reasons for selecting their candidate.

Discussion

• Hypothesis: a majority of participants will select the Professional Profile as the profile best suited for the job.

• The Data compiled supports this hypothesis. 27 of the 40 participants chose the Professional Profile as the best suited for the job position.

Discussion• Previous research by Bohnert suggests

participation in socially deviant actions and behavior found on social networking sites negatively affects job eligibility is supported (Bohnert, 2013).• Out of the 40 participants, 27 selected the

Professional Profile, 13 selected the “Middle-Road” Profile, and 0 selected the Unprofessional or “Bad” Profile.

Discussion• Limitations and Future Studies: • Participants were all WLC college students.• If study was limited to only students with

managerial experience, this would give more insight into the professional world view.

• No use of media was used in survey• Potential use of media such as powerpoint or

actual social network profiles might influence the decisions made by the participants.

• The possible future study may target only those students that are Business Majors, as they will be more than likely to be making managerial decisions in the future.