Why doing a ‘humblebrag’ is nothing to boast about

IT is the favourite strategy of celebrities who want to show off about fame and money while still seeming down to earth.

But the ‘humblebrag’ may not be as subtle as they had hoped, for a study shows it makes people less likeable.

A humblebrag, most often seen on social media sites, is a boast disguised as a humble statement or complaint.

A famous example is Stephen Fry tweeting: ‘Oh dear. Don’t know what to do at the airport. Huge crowd but I’ll miss my plane if I stop and do photos... oh dear, don’t want to disappoint.’

However the humblebrag is actually less popular than outright, unashamed boasting, a study led by the University of North Carolina found.

People faced by someone humblebragging were less likely to help them out by, for example, signing a petition, according to the study, published in the Journal Of Personality And Social Psychology.

Lead author Dr Ovul Sezer said: ‘Even though bragging is frowned upon, at least it comes across as sincere. Humblebragging, on the other hand, is a sneaky, strategic thing, and people see straight through it.’