Remember a time where social media was a relatively new thing? Back even before Facebook took the world by storm, and we were communicating through the likes of Bebo and Myspace. It's strange to think how far we have come. There was a point where there weren't many people to talk to on the site, but by now there are so many using it that it's seen as a little strange if you choose not to sign up.
In fact, even those of us who don't log in that often still find ourselves coming across similar behaviour time and time again. Anyone who has spent any time on Facebook or social media of any kind will have laid their eyes on online behaviour like this at some point - the kind that makes you roll your eyes, or, if you're wise, click the unfollow button so you don't have to choose between unfriending someone and seeing their gym photos on your feed every day.
While the idea of posting status updates about your diet regime, workout routines and other fitness-related accomplishments may start off as a positive way of sharing your achievements with friends and family, it can quickly become too much for people to bear. In fact, according to this study, those who post this content regularly are textbook examples of narcissists.
A study conducted by researchers at Brunel University in London revealed that people that post these kind of updates frequently are often looking for validation from their peers, while those who publicly talk about their significant other on Facebook have low self-esteem.
According to the study, narcissists are more likely to frequently update about their achievements, motivated by a need for attention from others on Facebook. The greater the number of likes and comments, the more this need is reinforced. They are also more likely to speak about changes and effort they put into their physical appearance. On the other hand, writing updates about your kids is associated primarily with conscientiousness.
One of the researchers, Dr. Tara Marshall, a lecturer in psychology at the university, said:
"Although our results suggest that narcissists' bragging pays off because they receive more likes and comments to their status updates, it could be that their Facebook friends politely offer support while secretly disliking such egotistical displays.
"Greater awareness of how one's status updates might be perceived by friends could help people to avoid topics that annoy more than they entertain"
The researchers claimed that the primary goal is to boast about how much time you invest in your looks, concluding that this can be a vicious cycle of boasting followed by friends supporting the post, meaning they are more likely to repeat this kind of behaviour again.
This may or may not change how you see those how you see certain people like this online, but remember - there's always that handy 'unfollow' option to see less of it on your feed.
