ABSTRACT
As the Facebook of China, RenRen has been a popular networking site in that country for a decade. In more recent times, RenRen, as with other dedicated online social networking sites (SNS), has led many users to integrated apps like WeChat that emphasise a messaging function. Social media demographics in China are rapidly responding to changing urban conditions. RenRen offers its users platforms for social interaction. The maintenance of relationships on RenRen is best explained through the theory of social capital. In many respects any consideration of online social capital cannot be separated from the extraordinary scale of urbanisation in China. The massification of urban dwellers, the disruption to existing neighbourhoods and constant movement of new migrants to the cities as they find jobs and connections, makes online life an option that can often be more anchoring for people. The extent and nature of social media use are closely linked to changes in generational identity in urban areas since 1980s.
