Facebook use has been typologized in a number of ways, with considerable overlap between
classifications. Both Raacke and Bonds-Raacke (2008) and Park, Kee, and Valenzuela (2009) gathered data on motivation for Facebook use by asking participants to identify, from a given list of items, which ones described their reasons for using the site (Park et al. used a 1–6 Likert scale to assess the extent to which each item motivated site use). Bonds-Raacke and Raacke (2010) identified three core dimensions of use:information, friendship, and communication. These dimensions are consistent with earlier research, which showed that Facebook users sign-up principally to keep up-to-date with old and new friends, and for such purposes as organizing or publicizing social events, studying, and dating (Raacke & Bonds-Raacke, 2008). Park et al. (2009) typologized use in a similar way, with “socializing, entertainment . . . and
information” highlighted as three of the “four primary needs for participating in groups within Facebook” (p. 729), in addition to “self-status seeking.” This typology makes sense when interpreted in light of evidence suggesting that SNS activity correlates to a user’s sense of identity (Pelling & White, 2009).