Is social media turning us into narcissists?

More than 80 million photos are uploaded to Instagram every day. 1 billion 400 million people – 20% of the world’s population – describe the details of their lives on Facebook and give each other 3,5 billion likes. It seems that the statistics convincingly demonstrate how vain and obsessed we all are with ourselves, our loved ones.

Where is the cause and where is the effect?

Is social media turning us, relatively humble, into a pack of daffodils, hungry for attention and popularity? Or are we originally, by nature, egocentric?

Studies have already appeared, the authors of which claim to have revealed a connection between the increase in the number of narcissistic disorders (and such an increase is observed, for example, in the United States) and the ubiquity of social networks. A direct relationship was also found between the number of virtual friends a Facebook user has and the severity of his narcissistic traits.

However, psychologist Ciarán Mc Mahon, director of the Cybersecurity Institute, says the connection between narcissism and social media is far from clear. “Yes, it is true that in recent years there has been an increase in narcissistic disorders and the number of social media users has skyrocketed. But we cannot unequivocally say that there is a correlation between these two trends. Maybe it’s because narcissism is on the rise in Western culture, and social media simply reflects this phenomenon. And then we can assume that it is the narcissism of Western society that is the reason for the popularity of social networks.”

“If you are a narcissist, you will seek positive opinions of yourself. The world is your mirror and you are constantly seeking validation. And for this reason, you will describe your life in great detail on social networks, ”continues psychologist and psychotherapist Lucy Clyde (Lucy Clyde).

Life as account content

A striking example is 34-year-old Jack P. Over the past 10 years, he has managed to collect about 60 subscribers from around the world on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Jack checks his accounts dozens of times a day. In his own words, he is obsessed with maintaining his online image. He does not describe himself as a narcissist, but as a person who uses modern technology to develop his career and meet the expectations of his fans.

“Sometimes I spend hours thinking about what to post. What do my subscribers want? How would I like to look in their eyes? I consider it a very productive waste of time, because it brought me success, fame and money, says Jack. – I evaluate certain moments of my life depending on how good the content is for my subscribers. When I’m having a great time, it’s more important for me not to even enjoy in real life, but to capture it and share it with subscribers.”

Read more:

• Why am I on social media

Temptation for Millennials

Members of the online generation (or millennials) are particularly susceptible to the negative impact of social media. Young people inevitably go through a narcissistic stage between the ages of 17 and 21, when they seek their place in society and assert their independence from their parental family. Narcissistic traits, quite natural for this age, can be exacerbated by exposure to social networks.

“A person at this age is very dependent on the opinions of their peers,” explains Lucy Clyde. It is extremely important for him how other people look at him. And one of the most important tasks at this age is to create a positive image of yourself in the eyes of others, to make a favorable impression. Millennials, for example, will spare no time and effort to take the perfect selfie. Because it will hang on the Internet forever. The externality mindset puts a lot of pressure on their mind and psyche and can reinforce the underlying narcissism. And each of us has some narcissistic traits.

However, some research suggests that social media can be helpful in boosting our self-esteem. McMahon notes that they allow users to try on different roles and find a suitable place for themselves in society. But at the same time, he agrees that they create additional pressure on the psyche at an age that is already difficult.

And yet, McMahon notes, social media forces users to share too much with outsiders: “If you have a boring page, you won’t get any likes. But if you post some frank, provocative posts, your popularity grows. People who have 5000 subscribers are constantly thinking about what to post in order to get a big response.

be real

One of the problems of social networks is that our personality is presented there only partially, and not in its entirety, says Lucy Clyde: “We strive to show only the positive side of life, and leave all the unpleasant aspects out of the brackets. This is an embellished picture, from which all the dirt has been cleaned, as if it were not there. In fact, our complex personalities are impossible to fit into a selfie or a 140-character Twitter message. If we think that our posts are us, then we stop seeing both our own complexity and the complexity of other people. It is very difficult for a person to be real, himself, and social networks do not help here, but only interfere.”

“People are looking for external approval on social media for a reason, there is some deep reason for it,” continues McMahon. “It is important to think about what these people lack within themselves.”

See more on the newspaper’s website The Guardian.