Is Facebook a Tool to Achieve True Friendship? A Study from an Ascetic Perspective

Abstract

With the rise of social media networks, young people have found a channel of communication where they can create and maintain their personal relationships. But, among the wide range of possible relationships we should determine the role of true friendship as a vital element in the full development of one’s personality. Although many point out that Facebook is losing followers, it is still the leading social network with 2.8 billion users, 65 percent of whom are under the age of 35. Thus, based on the study of the ascetics of friendship by Pedro Laín Entralgo, we will analyse the way in which Facebook enables this through a study conducted with university students 18 to 22 years of age. The results will allow us to conclude that social networks do not provide the tools necessary to pass from fellowship, camaraderie and sympathy towards the experience of true and fulfilling friendship.