Teaching Veterinary Professionalism in the Face(book) of Change
Abstract
Facebook has been identified as the preferred social networking site among postsecondary students. Repeated findings in the social networking literature have suggested that postsecondary students practice high personal self-disclosure on Facebook and tend not to use privacy settings that would limit public access. This study identified and reviewed Facebook profiles for 805 veterinarians-in-training enrolled at four veterinary colleges across Canada. Of these, 265 (32.9%) were categorized as having low exposure, 286 (35.5%) were categorized as having medium exposure, and 254 (31.6%) were categorized as having high exposure of information. Content analysis on a sub-sample (n=80) of the high-exposure profiles revealed publicly available unprofessional content, including indications of substance use and abuse, obscene comments, and breaches of client confidentiality. Regression analysis revealed that an increasing number of years to graduation and having a publicly visible wall were both positively associated with having a high-exposure profile. Given the rapid uptake of social media in recent years, veterinary educators should be aware of and begin to educate students on the associated risks and repercussions of blurring one's private life and one's emerging professional identity through personal online disclosures.
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Workday comments are common on Facebook.
“whereas, workday comments are common on Facebook [12,18-20,22].”
From Effects of Mock Facebook Workday Comments on Public Perception of Professional Credibility: A Field Study in Canada (2019) · cites this paper as [20]
Profile comments were modeled after actual status updates from previous studies to authentically portray workday comments.
“Profile comments (ie, status updates) were modeled after actual status updates from previous studies of health professionals’ personal use of Facebook to authentically portray workday comments as they may be encountered online [18,20-22].”
From Effects of Mock Facebook Workday Comments on Public Perception of Professional Credibility: A Field Study in Canada (2019) · cites this paper as [20]
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YENİ MEDYA VE SOSYAL HİZMET: SOSYAL MEDYANIN SOSYAL HİZMET ALANINDAKİ YERİ
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- Authors
- Coe, J. B., Weijs, C. A., Muise, A., Christofides, E., & Desmarais, S.
- Affiliations
- Ontario Veterinary College (CA)
- Venue
- Journal of Veterinary Medical Education
- Published
- 2011-12
- Volume
- 38
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 353-359
- ISSN
- 0748-321X (ISSN-L)
- 1943-7218
- OpenAlex
- W2000519433
- Cited by
- 23
- References
- 24
- Citations by year
- 2025: 1 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 1 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 1 · 2016: 4 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 2 · 2013: 2 · 2012: 1
- FWCI
- 1.97
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Veterinary Medical Education (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Health › Social Media in Health Education
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Speech and Hearing › Veterinary Practice and Education Studies
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
- Keywords
- Facebook, social networking sites, veterinary students, professionalism, online self-disclosure, privacy settings, professional identity, substance use, client confidentiality, social media risks, veterinary education
- MeSH terms
- Attitude of Health Personnel, Canada, Education, Veterinary, Ethics, Professional, Female, Humans, Male, Schools, Veterinary, Self Disclosure, Students, Health Occupations, Teaching, Social Networking, Social Media
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