Generational differences in content generation in social media: The roles of the gratifications sought and of narcissism
A. Basic idea of the paper / research questions of the paper and the importance of the topic
This study examines “the roles of the gratifications sought and of narcissism in content generation in social media and explores the generational differences in motivations and in narcissistic personalities when predicting the usage of Facebook, blogs, and forums.” The generations analyzed are: Baby Boomers, Baby Bust or Generation X and Echo Boomer or Net Generation. The study gives a detailed explanation about all of them.
B. Theoretical rationale (theories / concepts used, empirical evidence given, ...)
The objectives of the study are:
- “To identify the gratifications sought in the production of UGC in social media (especially in Facebook, blogs, and forums).”
- “The contribution of narcissism to social media content generation”. It is hypothesized that “highly narcissistic subjects are likely to participate actively in social media content-generation.”
- “To investi...
Blumler, J G & Elihu, K (1974) - Sage Annual Reviews of Communication Research Vol.3, The Uses of Mass Communication: Current perspectives on gratifications research. CA:Sage
“Narcissistic Personality Disorder.” Cleveland Clinic. The Cleveland Clinic Foundation. N.P., 20 May 2005. Web. 19 May 2010.
In 1979, there was a lack of an appropriate instrument for measuring narcissism. (Emmons, 1984)
What happens when Narcissism takes over a generation? Is that generation the only generation who is affected? A narcissistic generation does not happen on it 's own. Majority of Millennial 's characteristics are negative but not entirely negative. However, Generation Me only values themselves. Their overemphasis on self-esteem is well intentioned but often leads to narcissism. Both terms can be avoided with proper treatment.
Here’s a question, how often do you check your social media profile’s notification? Based on a research conducted, it is revealed that, Facebook users around the world logged into their account approximately 42,000 years of human time each day (Gutierrez, 2013). An article written by The New York Times stated that the current generations are becoming narcissistic and it is believed that social media are among the plausible factors that promotes it (Quenqua, 2013). However, how true can this statement be? Many researches have proven that social media is not the main cause of narcissism. It has been demonstrated via the real role of social media, the co-relation between social pressure and narcissism, the failure to conclude acceptance of criticism instead of narcissism, the current generation trend and the real problem of narcissism.
People find that using social media is enjoyable, even pleasurable. Students at Harvard looked in to this claim: "Through a series of experiments, the researchers at Harvard University learned through the study that the act of disclosing information about oneself activates the same part of the brain that is associated with the sensation of pleasure, the same pleasure that we get from eating food, getting money or even having sex"(site2). In other words many find it pleasurable to post things about themselves and discover new things about those they know or admire, to a point where using social media each day becomes an addiction. The majority of the social media audience is teens or children from ages 7 to 21. Older people also post status, however not as frequent as the younger generation.
Today, our culture demands us to be perfect, thin, powerful, successful, smart, extraordinary, but when people begin to try achieving them, we start labeling them as narcissists. The problem is that it is impossible for anyone to please everyone. Brown defines narcissism as simply a “fear of never feeling extraordinary enough to be noticed, to be lovable, to belong, or to cultivate a sense of purpose” (22). Before giving out labels, it is wise to practice asking ourselves questions to clear the intentions and reasons of someone’s behavior. For example, teenagers posting pictures of themselves online to gain some attention reveals that the culture has taught them that they are as lovable as the number of likes and comments they get on social media. Negative feedback roots into negative thinking about vulnerability and causes them to shut themselves down and never show their real selves again. Encouraging others to believe that they are perfect as themselves, will plant a positive attitude in them and push them to pursue their goals and visions to fulfill their dream of a happy
According to Webber, narcissists are normal people victimized by “an overused label”; in fact, narcissists have healthy egos who “happen to indulge in the occasional selfie, and talk about their accomplishments” (Webber 54). She strategically organizes the quotes of many experts to give a more favourable sense of the word, clarifying that narcissism not only makes people feel good about themselves, but it also boosts confidence and helps individuals “take risks, like seeking a promotion or asking out an attractive stranger” (Webber 55). She also makes the persuasive point that individuals are more narcissistic in their earlier years of adulthood, making an ethical observation that “young adulthood is a time when people are largely free of responsibilities, either to their family of origin or the family they will eventually establish” (Webber 60, 61). These are the times when people are free to pursue an independent life and make independent decisions without the restraints of family to hold them back. Although narcissism is a natural part of an individual’s personality, Webber does point out that, too much of it can become a
In Jean Twenge’s novel titled, “Generation Me”, she describes “Generation Me” as a group of self-obsessed, overconfident, assertive, miserable individuals. “Gen-Me” cares about what other people think so much they 'll go to great lengths to “impress” their peers. Self-obsession can be viewed as a sickness of the mind. The average person may be oblivious to the fact that 1 out of 6 people are narcissists. “Narcissism falls along the axis of what psychologists call personality disorders, one of a group that includes antisocial, dependent, histrionic, avoidant and borderline personalities. But by most measures, narcissism is one of the worst, if only because the narcissists themselves are so clueless.” - Jefferey Kluger
Twenge, J. M., & Campbell, W. K. (2009). The narcissism epidemic: Living in the age of entitlement. Simon and Schuster.
University of Michigan. (2013, June 11). You're so vain: Study links social media use and
Recent research has uncovered that the Millennial Generation are more Narcissistic than previous generations (Orr et al., 2009). Narcissistic Personality Disorder is “identified by the presence of grandiose self-importance...” (Bender, 2012). Narcissists tend to see themselves as being intelligent, powerful, physically attractive, special and unique, and they expect special treatment from others while believing they owe nothing in return (McKinney, Kelly & Duran, 2012; Orr et al., 2009). Alongside this increase of Narcissistic behaviour, there has also been an increase in usage of social networking sites (SNSs) (Orr et al., 2009). SNSs such as Facebook and Twitter have been growing at an exponential rate, particularly Facebook, which is currently
Robbins & Judge (2009) describe narcissism as an individual “who has a grandiose sense of self-importance, requires excessive admiration, has a sense of entitlement, and is arrogant.” Poet Tony Hoagland brought up a valid observation in the textbook about the American culture
Social media has taken over the world of communication and has changed the ways in which we communicate on a daily basis. It is extremely influential on our lives because of how easily we are able to access these mediums of communication. I’m intrigued by the effects that social media has on people’s perceptions of their self-worth. Almost all of the social networking sites seem to measure, at least to some extent, the popularity level or status of its users. All have a number of ‘followers’ or ‘friends’ which if there’s a high number of followers or friends that seems to elevate a person’s popularity level or their online status. This in turn could make their self-esteem or ego rise, whereas if their follower level is low it may disappoint or aggravate that user. All of these sites also offer areas where followers can ‘like’ pictures or posts, ‘comment’ on these pictures/posts, ‘share’ the post, and what have you. How important are ‘likes’ and whatnot to our actual self-esteem? Do we value online popularity the same way or more than we value real-life interactions? How could this affect the mental health of those who use these networking sites? Is this kind of online community promoting more narcissistic persons in the community? So many questions… I’m not alone in asking these questions. I’m convinced that social media has a negative influence on the self-esteem of its users.
There has also been a rise in the number of studies done on people’s behavior and personality differences when using social media, experts are becoming more and more interested in the effects social media has on our decision making and behavior. These studies are based on the “big five” personality traits [a term originally coined by Lew Goldberg, (1981)]. The five personality traits that this term refers to are extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism and openness to experiences. By basing these studies on the big five traits this allows us to have some insight on why people post what they post and what personality types are most likely to alter certain characteristics about themselves when using social media