“Selfitis” negatively affects one’s social media presence
“Selfitis” is diagnosed by the taking and posting of copious amounts of selfies, and can be defined as the inflammation of one’s ego, according to an article entitled “Selfies, Facebook, and Narcissism: What’s the Link?” from pyschologytoday.com.
The selfie has rapidly gained popularity in recent years and has become a worldwide phenomenon. A survey, conducted by the PEW Research Center in 2014, estimates 91 percent of teenagers are guilty of taking at least one selfie.
The Forbes article, “The ‘Selfie’: Mental Disorder Or Insight To Getting Better Results?,” speculates the reason behind the soaring selfie trend can be attributed to the basic human desire, “to feel noticed, appreciated and recognized.”
However, this new social media trend has its drawbacks. According to an article from TIME Magazine entitled “How Selfies Are Ruining Your Relationships,” the desire for recognition fulfilled by posting selfies offers an ironic because it can be viewed as a narcissistic plea for attention.
A study, conducted by the University of Birmingham, the University of Edinburgh, and Heriot-Watt University, found people who post countless selfies tend to have less meaningful, and more alienated personal relationships than those who do not. The report went on to say family members have trouble relating to family members who post a lot of selfies. However there is a positive correlation between people who post pictures of family members and the relationships of those people with their family members.
The occasional selfie will most likely do nothing to cause too much damage, but taking it too far will only serve as a hindrance to one’s social media presence, and relationships offline as well.