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Social Media & Relationship: 7 Myths

May 7, 2013 By 6 Comments
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Humans are social animals.  The need to connect is a primal drive.  Even our most basic needs, such as food and safety, have always been accomplished by humans as a group.  We weren’t equipped to conquer the world with fangs and claws, so we got a prefrontal cortex that gave us cooperation and attachment. There are a lot of myths about social media that reflect two fundamental things.  The first is the fearassociated with new technologies.  The second is the implicit assumption that the old way of doing things is the "right" way and the news ways are morally superior.  It's easy to see how both of those points of view happen.  It's also pretty clear that these types of cognitive bias don't form a very good basis for evaluating the new tools. Myth 1: Social media are destroying our social skills and replacing offline relationships Research shows that social media have enhanced relationships. Obvious benefactors are shut-ins and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Psychology, Social Media & Networks Tagged With: , , , , ,

How Obama Won the Social Media Battle in the 2012 Presidential Campaign

January 25, 2013 By 3 Comments
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The 2008 Obama Presidential campaign made history.  Not only was Obama the first African American to be elected president, but he was also the first presidential candidate to effectively use social media as a major campaign strategy. It’s easy to forget, given how ubiquitous social media is today, that in 2008 sending out voting reminders on Twitter and interacting with people on Facebook was a big deal.  When Obama announced his candidacy in 2007, Twitter had only just started and there wasn’t even an iPhone yet. An effective social media campaign is based on the psychology of social behaviors not the current technology Four years later, the media landscape looks a lot different.  There are an ever-increasing number of social media tools and a rapidly growing user base across all demographics.  Current measures of American adults who use social networks are at 69%; that’s up significantly from the 37% of those who had social network profiles in 2008.  And contrary … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Media Psychology, Psychology, Social Media & Networks Tagged With: , , , ,

Missouri Takes Aim at Facebook: Who Are We Protecting?

August 20, 2011 By Leave a Comment
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Social media and Facebook in particular are an emotional powder keg these days.  From anxieties over stalking and child abuse to the potential for terrorism and social unrest, social networking is the new poster child for fear.  The state of Missouri has even gone so far as enact legislation severely restricting teachers online interaction with students. Gov. Jay Nixon signed Senate Bill 54, or the "Amy Hestir Student Protection Act" into law on July 14. There is a political and emotional appeal in artificially suppressing something you're worried about, in this case how teachers and students can communicate and connect.  You can either feel like you're doing something (or show your constituents you're doing something), and/or you don't have to see it when it does happen, so you don't have to worry about it.  But I guarantee you that there are already geeks inventing new ways of communicating that this law won't touch.  Unless, of course, you don't want teachers talking to … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Culture & Society, Education, Psychology Tagged With: ,

Social Media Did Not Cause the London Riots

August 14, 2011 By 8 Comments
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After four days of looting and rioting across the UK, people are looking for answers. The violence that started in London, spread rapidly across not only Greater London, but most of the country, not as single oozing mass, but more like an outbreak of the measles. Its speed and range is attributed to the rioters' use of social media, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Blackberry Messenger. Information and disinformation alike travel fast in social networks. As people try to make sense in the aftermath, an emerging theme is the culpability of social media. Focusing blame on social media is akin to killing the messenger and is both naïve and dangerous. Social media is just a tool. It's a powerful one, but a tool nonetheless. It can be used in good ways and bad ways, just like a hammer or a baseball bat. While the riots raised legitimate questions about social and government systems, it has also put social media squarely in the sights of the politicians. Social media is an easy target. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Psychology Tagged With: , ,
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