technology
Is green-eyed monster behind your Facebook post?
Holiday snaps uploaded on Facebook are an attempt to portray our best selves and to induce envy, says a study. – Reuters pic, December 4, 2015.Facebook posts could mean more than just wanting to upload a few holiday snaps, with a recent study by the University of British Columbia, Canada, finding that envy is the key motivator behind many Facebook updates, which isn’t a good thing for users’ mental wellbeing.
To find out more about the possible negative effects of Facebook use, researchers surveyed 1,193 Facebook users at a German university.
The students responded to a series of questions about their use of the social network and reported the feelings that they experienced while using it.
The team then cross-referenced the students’ Facebook habits with their reported feelings, finding that Facebook led users to feel unfulfilled by their own lives when compared with those of others.
The team concluded that such feelings of non-fulfilment, jealousy and self-importance are among the main motivators behind many posts on the site, as users attempt to portray their best selves.
“Social media participation has been linked to depression, anxiety and narcissistic behaviour, but the reasons haven’t been well explained,” said Izak Benbasat, one of the authors on the study.
“We found envy to be the missing link.”
The team also found that travel photos are one of the strongest factors behind Facebook-induced envy, with people posting their most perfect holiday photos in an attempt to portray a more perfect, if unrealistic, life.
The reason for this, however, was not to induce jealousy in others, but rather a desire to compete with friends and maintain appearances.
Benbasat commented that due to the nature of social networking, these types of post are unlikely to change.
However measures can be taken to reduce these negative feelings.
“Sharing pictures and stories about the highlights of your life – that’s so much of what Facebook is for, so you can’t take that away,” he said.
“But I think it’s important for people to know what impact it can have on their wellbeing. Parents and teachers should take note as young people can be particularly vulnerable to the dark side of social media.”
The abstract can be found at: http://pubsonline.informs.org/doi/10.1287/isre.2015.0588
The Dutch website 99 Days of Freedom is an online study on how a Facebook-free life can impact on happiness.
Users can sign up on the website for 99 Facebook free days, or longer if they choose, to see what impact it has on their life. Some 43,346 people are currently subscribed. – AFP/RelaxNews, December 4, 2015.
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