“I got really offended by it:” College Student Views of Inappropriate Facebook Posts and what they did in Response
Loreen Wolfer

Abstract
Studies generally examine what types of material adolescents post on Facebook; little research examines the reactions of others to those posts. Focus groups of college students found that many felt that negative comments about social issues, such as race and gay marriage, or purposely embarrassing or being mean to an individual were the most inappropriate types of posts that they have seen on Facebook. Sexually explicated posts were mentioned by a few students. Most students admitted to seeing sexual posts; however, they were still more offended by other material. College student reactions mostly aligned along the extremes of either ignoring the post or unfriending the individual. Students who frequently ignored the posts did so because, while offensive, they found the posts entertaining or because they only considered the person to be a “Facebook friend”. Comments sanctioning offensive posts were generally reserved for “real friends”. Implications for Facebook socialization are discussed.

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