No Face To Face on Facebook
As a social species, which depends on human interaction and body language, Facebook is no substitute for what we need. This new social media, that was designed to connect people, ironically has the effect of making us feel more socially isolated, depressed, envious and dissatisfied with our lives, writes Shristhi Ranjith.
How many of your Facebook friends have you had a real-life interaction with recently? How many friend requests have you accepted from people that you don’t even know, just to get that number higher?
Facebook provides an invaluable means of communication and connectivity between its one billion users. When it comes to staying in touch with people around the globe and easy communication, then Facebook is a winner.
Nonetheless, the website’s value and popularity often conceals its more psychologically damaging qualities.
Instead of face-to-face interaction with people we know well, we maintain stagnant, surface level friendships through cyber communication.
The irony of Facebook is that it is a force for greater isolation and loneliness, as well as greater connectivity. Despite Facebook allowing us the ability to connect ourselves with people all around the world, the superficial nature of interaction on Facebook is the thing that socially isolates us.
People spend, on average; far more time passively scrolling through newsfeeds rather than actively engaging with people. Instead of picking up the phone and calling somebody they remain an observer who is disconnected.
In a study lead by the University of Michigan, findings showed that the higher usage of Facebook by users, the more miserable the volunteers felt about themselves. This leads us to the question:
“Would enga...
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...he amounts of direction social contact an individual had and how positive and satisfied they felt.
It is clear that like all technological advances, Facebook has some benefits. The risks however are a lot more hidden and need to be acknowledged.
Constantly comparing yourself with other people is a risky thing to do if you have a tendency towards depression. So too is presenting a view of yourself to the world that is built on a falsehood.
And even more significantly while you are doing these things you are withdrawing from the face-to-face interaction that keeps us mentally healthy.
Facebook is not a balanced critique of real life. So, be aware of the posers and the disingenuous on your news feed.
Be more careful in your selections and instead of sitting in your room scrolling through other people’s activities, go out there and meet people face-to-face.
One’s amount of Facebook reflects how popular one wish to appear online more than how healthy one’s friendship truly is. Constant usage of Facebook allows user to potentially feel like they have a meaningful social life, when in reality, they are missing something. In Stephen Marche’s 2102 article, “Is Facebook making Us Lonely?” he notes that Facebook was introduced to the world in the midst of spreading and intensifying loneliness, an idea to which he greatly attributes Facebook’s appeal and success (Marche 26). Initially, social networking sites seem to be evidence of modern-day social interaction being easier and more convenient than ever. However, they can just as easily convince users that they are missing out on having a social life. Marche quotes a woman named Moira Burke, who has conducted studies on Facebook interaction (34). Bruke claims that the way in which the site is used is the greatest factor in determining if it increases the loneliness of users or not, stressing the importance of actually communicating with people one knows personally instead of posting about one’s own activities or simply clicking “like” on the others’ posts. If a Facebook user simply sits back and watches the activity of others without interacting with them in any way referred to by Burke as “one-click communication” and “passive consumption”, it could result in feelings of stagnation, being left out, and loneliness. As one could probably guess, motivation plays a key role in how users choose to interpret their Facebook news feed. Some could be inspired by what they see on their feeds to go out and have an exciting social life. However, for those who already feel even slightly lacking in social skills, having a Facebook profile may simply emphasize to them what they are missing. These studies and findings ultimately reflect the negative effect of Facebook on
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Firstly, Facebook is a social tool that permits people to understand the continuously “updated version” of the world around them and let them feel to be part of it. People subscribe to the social network because they need to stay in tou...
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Ellison, Nicole B., Charles Steinfield, and Cliff Lamp. “The Benefits of Facebook “Friends:” Social Capital and College Students’ Use of Online Social Network Sites.” Wiley Online Library. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 23 Aug. 2007. Web. 06 Nov. 2013. .
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