You have probably heard every old person out there claiming that social media is bad for you, and for the most part this is due to the reason that they think that you are spending too much time on it. While it is fair to say that social media has in many ways changed the world for the better, this doesn’t mean that you are always going to be able to use these platforms without having to worry in any way, shape or form about the consequences associated with overdoing it in this regard.
The American Economic Review conducted an experiment to see if not using Facebook could have any kind of a positive impact on people’s lives. This experiment involved paying people $102 if they were to not use Facebook for four weeks. The results of this experiment indicated that people were genuinely happier when they weren’t using Facebook, something that probably happened for a wide variety of reasons.
For one thing, not being on Facebook meant that people had to stay in touch with others through more personal means such as text messaging or calling or even meeting in person which is something that people don’t do often enough these days. Using Facebook also means that you are being constantly bombarded with information, and that this information can lead to an overload in a lot of ways. Hence, taking a break can help you disconnect from this relentless information stream and focus on yourself. Seeing the worst things in the world being talked about constantly can lead to feelings of stress or dissatisfaction, so it makes sense that getting away from the noise has the potential to make you happier than you would have been otherwise, even if that break might just be temporary all in all.
Photo: Pixabay / MrJayW
Read next: Visualizing the best companies and industries to work for (infographic)
The American Economic Review conducted an experiment to see if not using Facebook could have any kind of a positive impact on people’s lives. This experiment involved paying people $102 if they were to not use Facebook for four weeks. The results of this experiment indicated that people were genuinely happier when they weren’t using Facebook, something that probably happened for a wide variety of reasons.
For one thing, not being on Facebook meant that people had to stay in touch with others through more personal means such as text messaging or calling or even meeting in person which is something that people don’t do often enough these days. Using Facebook also means that you are being constantly bombarded with information, and that this information can lead to an overload in a lot of ways. Hence, taking a break can help you disconnect from this relentless information stream and focus on yourself. Seeing the worst things in the world being talked about constantly can lead to feelings of stress or dissatisfaction, so it makes sense that getting away from the noise has the potential to make you happier than you would have been otherwise, even if that break might just be temporary all in all.
Photo: Pixabay / MrJayW
Read next: Visualizing the best companies and industries to work for (infographic)
