In this digital era, popularity is no longer about letters or e-mails one receives but more on online traction. A survey by an online security firm, Kaspersky, indicates that people are turning to social media to show off and to feel good.
However, the main issue with the pressure to keep up appearances and the never ending quest for social validation is that people are playing with the truth and whitewashing their lives.
New research by Kaspersky Lab shows that one in 10 people would bend the truth on social media in order to get more people to like their posts. The research also shows that in their pursuit of likes, men are more likely than women to post their privacy away.
Keeping in touch
This includes a higher likelihood of men posting nude photos as compared to women as well as posting photos of their friends wearing something revealing. Social media started off as a way of keeping in touch with friends and sharing memories with an audience of acquaintances, family and friends. This has changed over the years with the rise of new platforms including Snapchat and Instagram, among others, where users are opting to have open platforms rather than private profiles for sharing content.
āThe hunt for Likes plays a central role in this, with the majority of people feeling down or upset when they do not get as many likes as they expect for a post, and with 42 per cent saying they feel jealous when their friends get more likes than them. In addition, people feel envious when they see the seemingly happier lives of their friends on social media,ā said Kaspersky Lab.
To attract attention and secure a significant number of Likes, about one in 10 people pretend to be somewhere or doing something that might not be strictly true. This rises to 14 per cent of men, suggesting that many would rather get social media attention than share a realistic portrayal of their lives. āOur relationship with social media has developed into a vicious cycle. We want to go onto our favourite social platforms to tell all of our connections about the positive things we are doing ā that makes us feel goodā, says Evgeny Chereshnev, head of Social Media at Kaspersky Lab.
āBut the reality is that everyone is doing the same thing, so when we log onto social media weāre bombarded with images and posts of our friends having fun. And it looks like theyāre enjoying life more than us. Itās easy to see why this is leaving people feeling down and why so many people have considered leaving social media altogether.ā
The research uncovers that men are sensitive about how many Likes they get on social media and, in their hunt for Likes, they are more likely than women to reveal something embarrassing or confidential about co-workers, friends or employers.
At 65 per cent, most people globally use social networks to stay in touch with friends and colleagues and to see entertaining and funny posts. People also devote a significant amount of time to creating their digital profile and filling it with all kinds of posts about what is hot and what is not.
Despite the desire to feel good from their interactions on social media, when people see their friendsā happy posts about holidays, hobbies, and parties, they are often left with the bitter feeling that other people are enjoying life more than them.āFor example, 59 per cent have felt unhappy when they have seen friendsā posts from a party they were not invited to, and 45 per cent revealed that their friendsā happy holiday pictures have had a negative influence on them,ā according to the survey.
By DOREEN WAINAINAH [email protected]