Monday, September 10, 2018
Are people addicted to getting likes?!
Yes I know that this topic was in one of the examples on Moodle, but when I saw this I knew that I had to write a post about it because this is something that I am very passionate about. Why am I passionate about this? Well because I feel that YES people are addicted to getting likes, people feel gratification if there post gets a certain number of likes, and people feel insecure when they don't get a curtain number of likes on a post. Honestly I think that is very sad, because people should not care how many likes that they get, they should just be happy to share there pictures or posts with there friends, and not feel upset if they don't get a lot of likes.
Another part to this which makes it even more irritating to me is that there are actual apps that you can download and subscribe to that will generate "fake" likes. I have seen some of my friends use them, and it amazes me that some people feel that likes are that important that they will use apps to make it look like they got more likes then they actually did.
There are so many different parts to this one point about the gratification of likes on social media, and whether or not people are addicted to them or not. But this definitely reminds me of the reading that we did in class which was the reading about the ten tips for a good digital life written by Mark Deuze, and one of the tips is "don't over do it", and by using these apps to get fake likes that is definitely considered over doing it, because you feel that in order for you to be self gratified that you need all those extra likes.
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I’ve heard of purchasing ‘likes’ for your Facebook account. As ridiculous as it sounds, with Facebook’s new algorithms, more likes for your page or post may actually let you reach out to more of your followers. More likes means a more prolific post, which nudges the site’s algorithm into showing it to more people.
ReplyDeleteI looked at a few different services (most of them pretty shady) and the cheapest I could find were 500 likes for $4 (or the rupee equivalent). That’s quite a deal. Unfortunately, as I was reading about people who’ve actually used these services, it looks like all of these accounts liking your page are from India or Eastern Europe. They’re almost always bots or fake accounts, so they don’t actually contribute anything more than that initial like. Facebook won’t prosecute you for using these services, but I can imagine one of your followers checking why one of your posts has 500 more likes than usual, seeing all those foreign names, and getting pretty suspicious!
These services are probably more or less useless. They don’t really increase exposure to a marketable audience. They’re just empty numbers. Even people who are ‘addicted’ to likes won’t get any morale boost from them. They’re artificial—devoid of the essential ‘human’ element.
I remember two summers ago, my family went on vacation to St. Maarten. My sister, who definitely has that “always-on” mentality, made my mother take 200 pictures or so of her on the beach. She then went through all of them to see which one would give her the most likes. Strangely enough, she also had a couple of fake accounts just to like her photos. I also remember that I had an Instagram at this time, and she made fun of me because I didn’t get as many likes on one of my post as she did on hers.
ReplyDeleteThis is something I have never understood. I haven’t heard about apps giving people likes up until recently. It amazes me, but it’s not surprising at the same time. People become lost in what social media is supposed to be, and as you said above, they can overdo it. I’ve seen some people actually get depressed over the amount of likes they have. It’s sad how people have become addicted to the idea of getting praise from others who sometimes they don’t even know or aren’t close too. I wish people could understand that the number of likes you have literally doesn’t mean anything. What matters is the close bonding relationships you have with others either online or off.
ReplyDeleteCarrie, I completely agree with you and I have been here before…. Guilty. I was once addicted to getting likes. At the end of my senior year of high school and the beginning of my college career here at Plymouth I felt the pressure to have lots of likes on my posts and If I didn't receive enough on one I oftentimes found myself getting self-conscious and later deleting that post. I saw lots of girls around me feel the same way and I still do to this day. I would catch them downloading these apps to buy likes from just so that they can look “cool” or feel a little bit better about themselves and feel like that other girl that gets a ton of likes just to fit in. It just last year that I came to the realization that all of that stuff is so stupid and really sad.
With that being said I am not surprised at all. Social media does this to quite a lot of people across the globe every day. It makes people feel as though you are expected to live up to an impossible standard. Instagram is the number one platform where people feel the need to live up to this standard and show their “best selves” to all of their followers. As you stated above this is overdoing it. People need to understand that likes on a post does not determine who you are as a person.
After reading this post, this made me think about my interaction with my social media. As I reflect on my own usage and posting of my social media material, is that I don’t look for reactions and appreciation from others especially based off a like. These likes that we have created into an existence has messed up so many minds. This makes people believe they aren’t as worth it as another person because they don’t have a certain number of likes. I’ve never been one to worry about if I’ve gotten a ton or no likes on a picture and that I wouldn’t and still won’t go out of my way to get people to like something I posted. I’m more of a person who thinks the way of, if you like what I’m about that’s cool and if you’re not a fan of it, that’s also cool because at the end of the day it’s about what’s going on in my life and what I want to show people. However, the one thing I can say is that I did clean up my social media and not post things I wouldn’t want my family and work family to see. Thank you for your post Carrie.
ReplyDeleteCarries, I really enjoyed reading your post! I think that the topic you wrote about is a huge issue in todays society. People of all ages are all infatuated with social media and likes. I personally can't really wrap my head around why people care so much about how many people like their posts. It makes me think a lot about my interaction with social media and others around me. Personally when I was in high school I cared a lot about getting likes. I would worry about if my picture would get enough likes before I posted it, and I would also go to the point of only posting at a certain times which others would call "prime liking time". This prime like time would be when people would post their pictures and believe that they would get the most amount of likes at that time. Looking back at it now the fact other people and I went through to get like was completely ridiculous. I have since realized that no one really cares about how many likes you get. Realizing that I was so caught up in this social media frenzy doesn't surprise me that so many people are. Especially on apps like Instagram & Facebook which is a lot about likes some people go over board making their pictures and posts "perfect". That's seen a lot on insta with a lot of people claiming to be instagram famous just because they get a lot of likes and followers. I hope that eventually people will not care so much about what others care and just not be so focused on social media all the time.
ReplyDeleteHey Carrie, I also think that this is a very interesting topic to think about and it's really important that you brought it up. I think that this is a phenomenon that has been created before our eyes and effects mostly people born around our generation. One of the main points that you bring up is the issue of self gratification and insecurity. At what point do we feel satisfied with the number of likes we get and does that number rise over time? This is something that would be interesting to study into more.
ReplyDeleteI personally feel the same way with some of my posts and even though I realize how silly it is, it doesn't stop from the fact that it definitely has an effect on my mood. I would never go as far to get fake likes from a sketchy app, but I can understand the reason behind other people wanting to do that.
I like that you bring up Mark Deuze's article on tips for a good digital life. His tip for people to not overdo it definitely has the most reliability to this issue. I think that the majority of people who are effected are the ones who spend more screen time on Instagram or Twitter. I think that myself and others who are effected by this issue should consider going on a digital detox and see if that helps alleviate the effects of this issue.
This to me is one of the biggest topics we have to address when talking about making media technology in relationship to our human existence. While some of the articles I read highlighted the positive effects that social media can have on self esteem this line tends to be blurred in some cases and leads to a more egoist view of the use of the platform. For most of us we look at our likes and are happy to see friends from high school, college, work ect. As well as connect with others around the world who might share similar interests and goals. For some however this is turned into a way to feed their ego and manage insecurities. This to me might not be the most healthy way to deal with issues of insecurity or to raise self esteem. It might create negative mental patterns that can really be damaging to the psyche and our identity.
ReplyDeleteI think there is no one direct answer to this issue because our digital habits tend to be very personal and unique to everyone. Indirectly however I think it is important for us to be cognizant of who we are in our personal lives. The internet gives us “digital dissociative anonymity” which is the idea that we do not necessarily have to disclose everything about ourselves online. Moreover this makes it easier for someone to embrace an unrealistic identity or status online. Those with a healthy relationship between their interpersonal and digital self usually display a similar image of themselves in real life as well as in their digital space. The bottom line is that we have to keep it real if we want these technologies to function at an optimal level. If you display yourself for who you truly are online you will still access the benefits of this conncection.