The experiment – by Denmark’s Happiness Research Institute in Copenhagen – asked half of a 1,095 strong study group of Facebook users to give it up for a week, while the rest were told to carry on.
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For the study, the researchers divided a sample of 1095 people into a treatment group and control group; the treatment group refrained from using Facebook for a week, while the control group continued their normal usage.
The study found that people who took a Facebook break felt happier and were less sad and lonely.
“Facebook distorts our perception of reality and of what other people’s lives really look like”.
So, there you have it, a group of people who stopped using Facebook for a week were 0.56 times happier than those who didn’t, according to research.
Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) recently posted stellar quarterly results that made most on Wall Street happy.
Facebook can make users “lonely and angry” because they are constantly comparing themselves to other people’s seemingly flawless lives, a new study has found.
Mr Wiking said the social networking site was “a non-stop good news channel that paints false pictures of edited lives”. Said while I have not one, but three Facebook tabs open – one for stalking a friend I haven’t seen in ages who has gone travelling (I am so jealous I want to cry), one for stalking someone I quite fancy (I’m pining) and one for looking at the general News Feed. But on the other hand, if you do log off Facebook for a longer period of time, that might enhance one’s sense of isolation. The group also saw an increase in their social activity and their satisfaction with their social life.
The think tank said that it was surprised by the change it found in such a short time, and that it hoped to raise awareness of the influence of social media on feelings of fulfilment.
After all, “it’s also common wisdom that smoking is bad, yet we continue to do it”. ‘Facebook is a constant bombardment of everyone else’s great news, but many of us look out of the window ad see grey skies and rain, especially in Denmark. There can also be positive benefits from Facebook and social media, but I think the real thing to always be aware of is the affect it has on our perception of reality.
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At the end of the week, participants were required to rate the level of “life satisfaction” on either using the service or abstaining on a score of 1 to 10. By contrast, those who used Facebook were 55% more likely to experience overall stress.
