We've all been there. Feeling a little bit bored and with nothing to do, you log on to Facebook to see what your friends are up to in the hope their wild antics and funny stories might cheer you up - only sometimes it doesn't quite work out like that.
Instead of embarrassing drunken photos from the weekend that are sure to make you feel better about your own life, you come across photos of their last amazing holiday, their stunning brand new car or a soppy status update in which they profess their love for their other half. Great. Rather than feeling better, you now feel worse and you start to question why they've got it so good and you haven't.
If this is the case, you're not alone! A new study out this week suggests that feeling a bit lousy and fed up with your life following a Facebook session might actually be the norm. The study conducted by the University of Michigan and University of Leuven, Belgium found that the more a young adult uses Facebook, the less satisfied they feel with their life.
During the study, researchers monitored the Facebook activity of 82 volunteers in their late teens and early twenties over the course of two weeks. Throughout the study, the volunteers were asked to report on their feelings at five different points throughout the day and answer questions related to their emotional state of mind and well-being.
Although the study found that the participants used Facebook more when they were feeling lonely, it also found that the more participants used the site between two reporting periods, the more their satisfaction levels decreased. Interestingly, the study also monitored the participant's direct interactions (ie. face to face interactions, phone calls etc) and found the more direct interactions the participants had, the better they felt.
Now, although this study doesn't exactly offer conclusive proof that Facebook makes you miserable, it definitely supports the growing argument that social networks, and Facebook in particular, might actually be doing us more harm than good. This latest report backs up another study released in January by two German universities which found that one in three people actually felt worse after logging on to Facebook.
According to the German study, the most common cause of frustration came from users comparing themselves to others socially, while a "lack of attention" also left users with feelings of envy, misery and loneliness!
Now, here at Bubble, we're kind of inclined to agree with the study - but do our followers agree? It seems so!
Arif thinks he has the answer:
Like we mentioned, here at Bubble we think the study might have a point because 9 times out of 10 people only post positive things on Facebook. Why? Two reasons - firstly, there's a concern that if you post something 'negative', it runs the risk of looking like a cry for attention.
And second - as humans, we're much more inclined to share the positive aspects of our lives than the negative because they're well... positive and good things are associated with them! If we post positive things, we look successful, happy and 'together' - and who doesn't want to portray that image? Unfortunately, as the study shows, while we're creating a fantastic image around our own lives and profiles, there's a risk we could be alienating our friends and connections in the process.