For instance, in our pilot interviews, students discussed the ‘‘birthday’’ feature of Facebook,
which prompted them to send birthday greetings to friends with minimal
effort.
Finally, Facebook intensity predicted increased levels of maintained social capital,
which assessed the extent to which participants could rely on high school
acquaintances to do small favors. For college students, many of whom have
moved away for the first time, the ability to stay in touch with these high school
acquaintances may illustrate most clearly the ‘‘strength of weak ties’’ outlined by
Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication 12 (2007) 1143–1168 ª 2007 International Communication Association1163
Granovetter (1973, 1982). These potentially useful connections may be valuable
sources of new information and resources. Additionally, the ability to stay in touch
with these networks may offset feelings of ‘‘friendsickness,’’ the distress caused by the
loss of old friends.