Introduction
Social media is an influential cultural exchange in modern universities. Students from different cultures use social media to communicate and engage with others in college while influencing some aspects of their culture. According to Skubisz et al. (2023), students use social media to organize events and create organizations that promote their lifestyles. As such, the Greek lifestyle is moving beyond sororities, where they have been a feature for several decades, and supporting the development of new relationships and engagements promoting modern living. For example, Greek college organizations promote sisterhood and brotherhood among members. They use social media to ensure greater reach and inclusivity than sororities, which tend to be more exclusive (Beller et al., 2020). As such, social media has evolved traditional student institutions and reshaped them to mirror current dynamics. Social media facilitates faster communications, the development of online culture, and influence on people’s perceptions. As such, social media supports the evolution of the Greek lifestyle in colleges and its normalization as a college lifestyle among American students. It allows these students to join Greek organizations (Thompson, 2017). In this regard, the literature review explores the role of social media in adopting Greek life and professional student organizations’ recruiting process in today’s universities. It examines how social media is changing the dynamics of recruitment processes in Greek organizations in colleges.
Review of Past Studies
Fraternity and sorority life have become essential pillars of American college student life. Many students join these organizations to gain a sense of belonging, for entertainment purposes or are recruited through other friends (Banks & Archibald, 2020). While these organizations have received negative publicity, they have become crucial to students developing social and leadership skills. Also, members consider themselves global citizens. According to Pike (2020), fraternity and sorority memberships positively contribute to students’ satisfaction and engagement in colleges.
Similarly, Yates (2020) showed that participation in Greek life events positively contributed to learning outcomes among students. Yates found that fraternities and sororities play an outstanding role in student involvement, and more social media interactions might regulate the overall institution’s success during the recruitment process. However, more transparency and accountability are needed to ensure the continued existence of these organizations.
Fraternities and sororities have been identified for alcohol abuse, sexual assault, and other vices associated with college students (Banks & Archibald, 2020). Sororities and fraternities were linked to racism. For example, Roland and Matthews (2023) reviewed several websites and social media accounts of some of these organizations, and the results showed racially insensitive messages and information. While the many statements aimed at tackling racism, Roland and Matthews (2023) point to the contribution of social media to the formation of organizational messages and the perceptions of Greek life communities, which, in a way, may inevitably lead to the plight of other university students. As a result, there are talks about some of the schools banning some classes entirely, programs that have been banned, or suspending frats and societies. Smith (2023) delves into the intense recruitment process and its societal implications, highlighting issues such as racism, sexism, and the perpetuation of social hierarchies within Greek life. It highlights the underlying problems inherent in Greek organizations and calls for a more nuanced discussion to address systemic issues and promote inclusivity within these institutions.
Similar to Roland and Matthews (2023) and Smith’s (2023) findings, Escamilla et al. (2019) suggested many ethical issues impacting the organizations’ reputation. For instance, social media posts by sorority or fraternity members may not always adhere to the organization’s ideals and may reflect adversely on the group. This case looks at the organization’s response to the postings, including what steps it can take to lessen the damage. Also, Yan et al. (2021) found the prevalence of sexualization in fraternity Instagram posts, uncovering a clear trend where posts with more sexualized content receive more likes, particularly those featuring women. This detailed content analysis not only sheds light on the reinforcement of gendered dynamics and sexual stereotypes within fraternity culture but also calls for proactive measures to address these issues. Due to social media’s pervasiveness in society, it is essential to comprehend how it affects emerging adults’ eating disorders.
Despite the concerns regarding these organizations, Potier (2019) indicated that social media was expanding their memberships. Sororities are using social media to recruit and vet potential members. According to Beller et al. (2020), social media strategies offer a foundational understanding of how digital platforms can shape student perceptions. This is crucial for analyzing Greek life’s digital engagement within this specific student demographic. Social media effectively reaches a large audience and increases the chance of interacting with prospective members. In the meantime, Baylor Lariat. (2023) advocated for a slower recruitment process of sorority members, emphasizing surface-level behavior, status, and familial legacies. It provides valuable insights on enhancing the recruitment experience and guiding sororities in their use of social media to cultivate a supportive and value-driven community culture. Social media is one of the tools that can help in nurturing supportive and value-driven organizational cultures within the organizations. Aligned with this suggestion, Portman (2022) contextualized sorority social media encounters emphasizing the construction of socially acceptable online presentations by collegiate sorority women, focusing on the utilization of sorority-specific aesthetic cues on Instagram. Portman (2022) shed light on broader social dynamics and dominance hierarchies within sororities. The study underscores the adaptability of social media environments, particularly in response to external factors like the COVID-19 pandemic, and suggests avenues for further research on the evolving role of social media in shaping group identities and interactions.
Contrastingly, Potier (2019) raised issues with the biases and risks associated with the maintenance of professional boundaries on social media. Similar to Potier’s observations, Thompson (2017) delved into the impact that media has on Greek life members’ socialization and showed that social media and digital platforms can influence views, expectations, and the reality of sororities. It showed that social media was beneficial in community engagement and people’s perception, despite creating unrealistic expectations of new members and stereotypes that they might perceive. Also, social media was influential in the decision-making processes of many sororities. For example, Shields and Peruata (2018) explained the role that social media has on the decision-making process of aspiring university students while focusing on how digital platforms affect Greek life recruiting. Based on self-reported surveys, Shields and Peruata (2018) found that though the initial claims show limited use, many students actively utilize social media like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to get insights and info on campus life and culture, which, influence their admission decisions. The study highlighted the necessity of strategic, student-centered social media strategies for colleges, showing that a similar approach can help these Greek life organizations recruit. While Shields and Peruata’s (2018) study revealed a discrepancy between prospective students’ self-reported usage of social media for university selection and their actual engagement with university social media platforms, it highlighted the value of strategic social media use in attracting university students, and enhancing quality of engagement among students.
Also, sorority membership was important for the integration of students from minority races into predominantly white institutions. According to Garcia (2020), Latina/o sororities and fraternities provided a sense of belonging between students at predominantly white institutions. They create support systems for the college experiences for the Latina or students experiencing cultural identity. In line with this argument, Garcia (2020) noted that social media is important in Greek life’s recruitment processes as they support the communication of cultural and community values to new members. According to Garcia’s findings and research, good communication and social media recruitment techniques should represent the organization’s core values and priority of inclusivity and identity formation. Throughout the article, Garcia (2020) gives a good grasp of the cultural dynamics in Greek life and the essential ideas for developing social media tactics that communicate cultural and communal values to new members. Garcia (2020) delves into the role of Latina/o sororities and fraternities at predominantly white institutions, emphasizing how these organizations foster a sense of belonging and support for Latina/o students through community and cultural identity.
Consequently, people can contact users as often as possible, thanks to social media. Social media is a tool that sororities use to communicate with their members regularly, keeping them informed, and building relationships. Using Collins’s (2004) Interaction Ritual Theory, Beaver (2016) investigated how consistent, moderated social media usage promotes pleasant interaction rituals among sorority members. According to the interviews, the women are subject to regulation due to a “social media contract” that all participants must sign. There is a less formal expectation that sisters will “like” and comment on each other’s social media posts. Because they are expected to engage actively in their sisters’ social media posts, sorority women engage in recurring little rituals of social media usage that serve as a constant source of affirmation for their relationships and social cohesion. Thus, sorority sisters feel encouraged and validated by their fellow sisters due to these interaction rituals. Beaver (2016) notably highlighted how the ritualistic use of social media—such as liking and commenting on each other’s posts—acts as a continual affirmation of relationships among sorority sisters. Beaver (2016) illuminates the internal dynamics of social media interactions among current members.
Meanwhile, social media contributed to some of the negative impacts of sororities on students’ college life. For instance, Skubisz et al. (2023) noted using social media increases social comparison, which is connected to disordered eating. Most emerging adults utilize social media compared to other developmental groups. Due to the great emphasis on looks, women in college and sororities may be particularly susceptible to social comparison and disordered eating. The study found that participants felt pressured to appear well when wearing sorority letters and observed that attractive members were frequently highlighted. Due to social media’s pervasiveness in society, it is essential to comprehend how it affects emerging adults’ eating disorders. Every participant stated that they knew of peers who suffered from eating disorders. Everyone utilized retouching software to change their appearance or lose weight, and Instagram was the most popular social media site at the time. Skubisz et al. (2023) suggested that social media, especially platforms like Instagram, can exacerbate issues related to body image and eating disorders due to the pressures of social comparison. While the study effectively identifies the challenges posed by social media in promoting unrealistic beauty standards and its consequences, it does not specifically address how these pressures influence the recruitment process of sororities beyond the selection and portrayal of members based on appearance.
Literature Gaps
This literature review examined the growth of Greek life in American universities and found how they were having a considerable impact on the student’s life and academic attainment. However, these sororities and fraternities have been accused of unethical practices that undermine the engagement and leadership development platforms they create for the students. The findings highlighted the importance of social media in decision-making and building engagement among members. However, these studies were silent on the role of social media in the recruitment of members. For instance, these studies fail to answer questions such as: How can social media platforms be utilized to counteract the negative stereotypes and practices prevalent in sorority recruitment? What strategies can be employed through these platforms to highlight and promote inclusivity and positive reform within Greek life? Additionally, how do the portrayals of sorority life on platforms affect potential new members’ perceptions and their decisions to participate in Greek life? The proposed study seeks to fill these literature gaps by exploring strategies that fraternal organizations can implement to foster a culture of responsible social media use among members. Additionally, it will assess how these strategies not only prevent reputational damage but also enhance the organization’s public image. In doing so, it proposed study seeks to answer the following research questions:
- How can sororities and fraternities use social media to recruit new members?
- How will social media recruitments impact on the overall culture of sororities and fraternities?
- What are the ethical concerns associated with social media recruitment and engagement in sororities and fraternities?
References
Banks, S. A., & Archibald, J. G. (2020). The state of fraternity and sorority life in higher education. Georgia Journal of College Student Affairs, 36(1), 3.
Pike, G. R. (2020, March). The Greek Experience Revisited: The Relationships betweenFraternity/Sorority Membership and Student Engagement, Learning Outcomes, Grades,and Satisfaction with College. Research Report prepared for the North AmericanInterfraternity Conference.
Roland, E., & Matthews, C. E. (2023). Addressing racism through organizationalstatements: Examining NPC sororities website and social media posts. Oracle: TheResearch Journal of the Association of Fraternity/Sorority Advisors, 17(3), 55–70.
Yates, R. (2020). Student Involvement & Graduation Rates: A Quantitative Study on theImpact of Adding a Fraternity & Sorority Community at Colleges & Universities in theUnited States. Journal of Sorority and Fraternity Life Research and Practice, 15(1), 1–13.
Potier, A. (2019, April 23). The use of social media in recruitment and selection: Risk vs.reward. IOHRM at Appalachian State University.https://iohrm.appstate.edu/alumni/professional-development-articles/use-social-media-recruitment-and-selection-risk-vs-reward
Thompson, B. A. (2017, August). Sorority Girl: Media’s Role in the Sorority SocializationProcess. Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Texas Tech University.
Shields, A. B., & Peruta, A. (2018). Social media and the university decision: Doprospective students really care? Journal of Marketing for Higher Education, 29(1), 67–83.
Garcia, C. E. (2020). Belonging in a predominantly white institution: The role ofmembership in Latina/o sororities and fraternities. Journal of Diversity in HigherEducation, 13(2), 181–193.
Beaver, V. (2016). Social media sister: Applying interaction ritual theory to sororitywomen and their social media usage (Order No. 10109261). Available from ProQuest OneAcademic; Social Science Premium Collection. (1795585006).
Skubisz, C., Yates, J. M., Doyle, J. L., & Pacanowski, C. R. (2023). Making Life LookPerfect and Glorifying the Sorority Chapter: A Content Analysis of Body Image, SocialMedia Use, and Disordered Eating in College Women. American Journal of LifestyleMedicine, 15598276231222195.
Escamilla, C. A., Fraccastoro, K. A. ., & Ehrlich, E. (2019). The Impact Of Social MediaOn Fraternal Organizations: Ethical Concerns. Journal of Business Case Studies (JBCS),15(2), 45–54. https://doi.org/10.19030/jbcs.v15i2.10316
Beller, R., Albinsson, P. A., Cathey, J., & Medders, L. (2020). Recruiting Students in HigherEducation in the Age of Social Media (Doctoral dissertation, Appalachian StateUniversity).
Baylor Lariat. (2023). Don’t ‘rush’ the process: Take the pressure off sorority recruitment. In University Wire. Uloop, Inc.
Portman, J. (2022). Committed Commenting and the Virtual Visage: Contextualizing Sorority Social Media Encounters. Journal for Undergraduate Ethnography, 12(1), 121–136. https://doi.org/10.15273/jue.v12i1.11317.
Smith, R. (2023). Unpacking Sorority RushTok. In University Wire. Uloop, Inc.
Yan, K., Salmon, J., & Aubrey, J. S. (2021). A Sexy Post a Day Brings the “Likes” Your Way: A Content Analytic Investigation of Sexualization in Fraternity Instagram Posts. Sexuality & Culture, 26(2). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-021-09915-9.
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