Liked

In reality, no one really cares about what you post on the social media sites unless they can directly relate to it. Or, if they are emotionally-linked to the person - if they are your friends, family or romantically-linked with them. People react to your posts because of who you are and not on the things that you have posted. Ironically, there are those who will soon know you better through the things you reveal about what’s inside and eventually be turned-off from “liking” you.

Human as we are, we like to be affirmed. We like to be LIKED! We want to be recognized for our skills, personality and actions. That is one of the motivations why people post things on social media. This could be considered as stimulus. A lot of psychologists suggests that the things we post on these portals are reflections of our need to be accepted and affirmed. This could even be a healthy way of self-cognition since one could track his or her line of thoughts.

The reactions generated from the posts you do, on the other hand, depend on the state of mind of the receiver and his/her orientation or background. The ones who have positive and “wide” mindsets could see the posts as they are: outlets of self-affirmation. But the ones with negative mindsets and backgrounds could not allow you to dwell on being HAPPY and start creating things otherwise. It is their nature - dark, envious, negative and unhappy. We could not help their existence. We just allow them to simmer on their own negativity.

But why do a lot of people misbehave in the social media sites?

Basically, what is inside could not be concealed for very long. Smoke goes out. Those who misbehave are often doing the same in real life. Or, according to psychologists, they are starting to come out since the virtual platforms seem to be safer grounds to reveal who one really is. There are even instances that the “freedom” suggested by the internet could trigger the metamorphosis of the “dark” side of our beings.

Recently, research reveal that the reasons why people love to express themselves on social media sites are self-esteem, levels of narcissism, neuroticism, extraversion, openness to experience agreeableness and conscientiousness. ( Marshall, Lefringhausen, Ferenczi)

The research formed conclusions that the purpose of the posts are: the user wants attention and acceptance, an outlet for self-expression, or the ability to communicate information through their weblogs or pictures.

Not surprisingly, the study revealed that posts about social activities, life, and achievements received the most likes and comments, and posts about deep thoughts and intellectual ideas received the least amount. The research then inferred that although the latter seem shallow and superficial, it makes sense since people who usually use the social media platforms either use them for recreational purposes or to link with the people they like… rather than bombard their minds with heavy stuff and intellectual discourses, they like to celebrate living by laughing and linking with those who understand them.

Of course, this is a free country. The freedom of speech and expressions could also be practised on these virtual sites. Yet, we must not fail to conform to what is moral and legal. Our education and values must overpower our eccentricities and even (minor) insanity . Because, it is so unbecoming to allow the skewed parts of our personalities to overpower when in fact, we are destined to be good, respectful and we are designed to LOVE.