Facebook Makes People Feel Better

Facebook makes people feel better, or so the claim has been made by the Facebook team (Who, I’m sure, are just a LITTLE bit biased).

An article from allfacebook.com pointed out the recent Facebook South Park episode : “[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][it] poked fun at a character named Kip Jordy who didn’t have any Facebook friends. Jordy’s life was turned around after Kyle ends up friending him, immediately killing months of loneliness. While it was a cartoon show, it also effectively illustrates what the Facebook researchers found: logging on to Facebook and communicating with friends makes people feel better and less lonely.”

As an extrovert, I personally agree with these findings. Whether online or offline, I love connecting with people and re-connecting with old friends. I’m lucky to have met and learned from some amazing people throughout my life. Facebook has allowed me to reconnect with people I would have lost touch with forever.

It’s not surprising to me that over 400 million people have connected to this website. From teenagers to senior citizens, I’m able to stay updated on what my friends are doing from around the world.

A few months ago, I realized just how important Facebook was to me when I had difficulty logging on through Firefox (and now have to use Safari). I couldn’t access my messages or make status updates. And, if I can’t access my contacts through Facebook, I will potentially lose contact information for a few hundred people.

Without having read the full study, it seems this announcement is skewed for a few reasons.  It’s only natural that extroverts would feel better as connecting with people gives them energy.

I’d be curious to know if this study also examined the effects on introverts versus extroverts.

You can download the full study here and read more about the findings via the Facebook blog.

And, please tell your friends to join the PUNCH!media Facebook Fan Page at http://www.facebook.com/punchmediadotca. Seeing each new Fan really does make me feel better.[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]