AN INVESTIGATIVE LOOK INTO HOW FACEBOOK IS BEING UTILIZED BY COMPANIES AS A SCREENING TOOL IN THE HIRING PROCESS

Open Access
- Author:
- Hume, Lindsey Ann
- Area of Honors:
- Finance
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Science
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- James Alan Miles, Thesis Supervisor
James Alan Miles, Thesis Supervisor
William Kracaw, Faculty Reader
James Alan Miles, Thesis Honors Advisor - Keywords:
- Facebook
hiring decisions
online reputation
screening tool - Abstract:
- Abstract: This thesis is an investigative look into how companies are utilizing Facebook as a screening tool when making hiring decisions on prospective undergraduate candidates. Currently, Facebook is the world’s largest social networking site with over 630 million users globally (Facebook Marketing Statistics). Over 30% of the Facebook population is between the ages of 18 and 24; therefore it is not surprising that companies filling entry-level positions are tapping into this database in order to access candid information that might provide helpful insight on a potential employee. This paper examines the practice of using Facebook in recruitment & selection procedures from a corporate, consumer, and legal perspective. The findings of this research suggest that the majority of companies recruiting undergraduates consult social networking sites and make hiring decisions based off of everything from Facebook profile pictures, to wall conversation’s, tagged photos, or even status updates. This study also proves that students are well aware of this occurring practice; results show that over 91% of job-seeking seniors have given thought to the appropriateness of their Facebook profiles while applying to jobs and 96% of these respondents stated their Facebook pages were private. Additionally, the large majority of student’s surveyed and interviewed stated that they had taken precautionary measures such as blocking their photos and changing their usernames to ensure that their Facebook pages would not interfere with any job opportunities. Finally, this thesis also examines the legal constraints around using social media as a hiring tool and delves further into how screening the Facebook pages of potential employees could potentially break laws that are in place to prevent Employment Discrimination.