Why Facebook Makes You Sad
February 1, 2011 8:25 AM   Subscribe

Why Facebook Makes You Sad.

Hint from Montesquieu: "If we only wanted to be happy it would be easy; but we want to be happier than other people, which is almost always difficult, since we think them happier than they are."

In one of the Stanford studies, Jordan and his fellow researchers asked 80 freshmen to report whether they or their peers had recently experienced various negative and positive emotional events. Time and again, the subjects underestimated how many negative experiences ( "had a distressing fight," "felt sad because they missed people") their peers were having. They also overestimated how much fun ( "going out with friends," "attending parties") these same peers were having.
posted by storybored (5 comments total)

This post was deleted for the following reason: :( -- jessamyn



 
Doubles make me sad
posted by Perplexity at 8:26 AM on February 1, 2011


Now dance like a happy prospector!
posted by kuujjuarapik at 8:26 AM on February 1, 2011


In before deletion makes me happy, in an odd way.
posted by pompomtom at 8:28 AM on February 1, 2011


Oh man, just when I was starting to feel better from the last time this was posted.
posted by Sailormom at 8:28 AM on February 1, 2011


Doubles make me sad

I bet it made you happy to do that.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 8:29 AM on February 1, 2011


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