Posting selfies on online could make you more self-centred, research warns
ARE YOU obsessed with posting selfies online? New research in Europe has found that too much posting of selfies and other photos could increase a person’s level of narcissism.
Conducted by researchers at Swansea University, UK, and Milan University, Italy, the small-scale study looked at 74 participants aged 18 to 34 to see how their personalities changed over a fourmonth period.
During this time the researchers also measured participants’ use of social media including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat.
The findings, publishing in the Open Psychology Journal, showed that all but one of the participants used social media.
Excluding time spent on the social media platforms for work, participants spent an average of three hours a day on the sites, although some reported using social media for as much as eight hours a day.
Over two thirds of the participants reported using social media primarily for posting images.
Moreover, the researchers also found that those who used social media excessively, posting a high number of photos, showed an average 25 per cent increase in narcissistic traits over the four months of the study.
The team also found that the more narcissistic participants were to begin with, the more verbal postings they made later.
Narcissism includes excessively seeking attention and a lack of empathy for others.
“There have been suggestions of links between narcissism and the use of visual postings on social media, such as Facebook, but, until this study, it was not known if narcissists use this form of social media more, or whether using such platforms is associated with the subsequent growth in narcissism,” commented lead author Professor Phil Reed.
“The results of this study suggest that both occur, but show that posting selfies can increase narcissism.” — Relaxnews