Self-branding in social media is getting out of hand. So, what happens when people make a conscious effort to stick to what is true and relevant? An experiment came up with some answers. Twelve thousand families worldwide committed themselves to online honesty for an entire year. They found out it was both addictive and viral.
“Unbridled self-branding is about to ruin what’s best in social media!” According to Michael Wu, the psychologist in charge of the experiment, this problem urgently calls for public awareness. "Most people design their online profiles to look their very best. But for a majority self-branding is an amateur’s game and there is only a thin line between optimising and bullshitting!”
"Just cut the crap and stick to what's true and relevant!"
GlobalNatives.Org, the synergy parenting community, set up the experiment to find out how a “cut the crap” strategy would change online interaction. From April ‘15 to March ‘16 a total of twelve thousand families participated on a voluntary basis, there were no rewards or bonus points for taking part. Half of these families were newly joined members, the other half had been active in the community for two years or longer. Within this community only verified members have access to each other’s profiles.
The researchers studied how people talked and how they reacted to each other for an entire year. At the start all participants had been certain that their online communication so far was sincere and appropriate. It surprised them to see to what extent they had subconsciously modified their online appearance, both by omission and by presenting to impress; the true-and-relevant guideline did prove an unexpected challenge. Being confronted with the honest and complete bandwidth of someone's talents and handicaps, dreams and failures, achievements and problems catches most people unprepared. However, being openly invited into someone's real life creates a sense of respect and empathy straight away.
Online honesty is a mirror and a magnifying glass
At the outset Michael Wu and his team had assumed that such an experiment would only make sense in a closed and interest-driven community, bonded by shared values and ideas. But participants’ feedback showed they also found it attractive in open social media. An overwhelming 91% stated they had become addicted to true-and-relevant communication. They felt it served them well both as a mirror for their own online presence and as a magnifying eye opener for others. And almost 80% came to the conclusion that online straightforwardness is viral: sincere openness was being answered with sincere openness without even the need to discuss it.
Michael Wu and his fellow researchers aim to present a full report on the experiment by October this year.
Links:
http://www.globalnatives.org
http://www.globalnatives.org/online-honesty.html
http://www.globalnatives.org/for-the-media.html
“Unbridled self-branding is about to ruin what’s best in social media!” According to Michael Wu, the psychologist in charge of the experiment, this problem urgently calls for public awareness. "Most people design their online profiles to look their very best. But for a majority self-branding is an amateur’s game and there is only a thin line between optimising and bullshitting!”
"Just cut the crap and stick to what's true and relevant!"
GlobalNatives.Org, the synergy parenting community, set up the experiment to find out how a “cut the crap” strategy would change online interaction. From April ‘15 to March ‘16 a total of twelve thousand families participated on a voluntary basis, there were no rewards or bonus points for taking part. Half of these families were newly joined members, the other half had been active in the community for two years or longer. Within this community only verified members have access to each other’s profiles.
The researchers studied how people talked and how they reacted to each other for an entire year. At the start all participants had been certain that their online communication so far was sincere and appropriate. It surprised them to see to what extent they had subconsciously modified their online appearance, both by omission and by presenting to impress; the true-and-relevant guideline did prove an unexpected challenge. Being confronted with the honest and complete bandwidth of someone's talents and handicaps, dreams and failures, achievements and problems catches most people unprepared. However, being openly invited into someone's real life creates a sense of respect and empathy straight away.
Online honesty is a mirror and a magnifying glass
At the outset Michael Wu and his team had assumed that such an experiment would only make sense in a closed and interest-driven community, bonded by shared values and ideas. But participants’ feedback showed they also found it attractive in open social media. An overwhelming 91% stated they had become addicted to true-and-relevant communication. They felt it served them well both as a mirror for their own online presence and as a magnifying eye opener for others. And almost 80% came to the conclusion that online straightforwardness is viral: sincere openness was being answered with sincere openness without even the need to discuss it.
Michael Wu and his fellow researchers aim to present a full report on the experiment by October this year.
Links:
http://www.globalnatives.org
http://www.globalnatives.org/online-honesty.html
http://www.globalnatives.org/for-the-media.html
