Facebook is not such a good thing for those with low self-esteem

(Medical Xpress) -- In theory, the social networking website Facebook could be great for people with low self-esteem. Sharing is important for improving friendships. But in practice, people with low self-esteem seem to behave counterproductively, bombarding their friends with negative tidbits about their lives and making themselves less likeable, according to a new study which will be published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

“We had this idea that Facebook could be a really fantastic place for people to strengthen their relationships,” says Amanda Forest, a graduate student at the University of Waterloo. She cowrote the new study with her advisor, Joanne Wood. The two are generally interested in self-esteem, and how self-esteem affects the kinds of emotions people express. People with low self-esteem are often uncomfortable sharing face-to-face, but Facebook makes it possible to share remotely.

In one study, Forest and Wood asked students how they feel about Facebook. People with low self-esteem were more likely to think that Facebook provided an opportunity to connect with other people, and to perceive it as a safe place that reduces the risk of awkward social situations.

The researchers also investigated what students actually wrote on Facebook. They asked the students for their last 10 status updates, sentences like, “[Name] is lucky to have such terrific friends and is looking forward to a great day tomorrow!” and “[Name] is upset b/c her phone got stolen :@.” These are visible to their Facebook friends, the people in their network.

Each set of status updates was rated for how positive or negative it was. For each set of statements, a coder – an undergraduate Facebook user – rated how much they liked the person who wrote them.

People with low self-esteem were more negative than people with high self-esteem – and the coders liked them less. The coders were strangers, but that’s realistic, Forest says. In earlier research, Wood and Forest found that nearly half of Facebook friends are actually strangers or acquaintances, not close friends.

Forest and Wood also found that people with low self-esteem get more responses from their real Facebook friends when they post highly positive updates, compared to less positive ones. People with high self-esteem, on the other hand, get more responses when they post negative items, perhaps because these are rarer for them.

So people with low self-esteem may feel safe making personal disclosures on Facebook – but they may not be helping themselves. “If you’re talking to somebody in person and you say something, you might get some indication that they don’t like it, that they’re sick of hearing your negativity,” Forest says. But when people have a negative reaction to a post on Facebook, they seem to keep it to themselves. “On Facebook, you don’t see most of the reactions.”

Provided by American Psychiatric Association

"Facebook is not such a good thing for those with low self-esteem." January 31st, 2012. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-facebook-good-self-esteem.html

 

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Robert Karl Stonjek

Accidents don't just happen: New Book on trends and takeaways in injury research

Two esteemed researchers in the field of injury research have published the most comprehensive reference book to date on the methods and approaches underpinning the scientific discipline of injury control and prevention.

Editors Guohua Li, MD, DrPH, professor of epidemiology at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health and Susan Baker, MPH, ScD (Hon.), professor of Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health– both leaders in the field -- have brought together a team of global experts from public health, medicine, engineering, and behavioral and social sciences to write about the latest advances in theories and methods for understanding the causes, mechanisms, and outcomes of injury as well as the strategies to prevent injuries.

Called a milestone and a "bedrock text" for researchers by the publisher, Springer, this is an essential reference book for anyone interested in violence prevention, emergency medical services, trauma care, risk assessment, crash investigation and litigation, and vehicle, occupational, recreational, and home safety. The cadre of leaders assembled by Dr. Li, who is also professor of Anesthesiology at the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons, and Professor Baker deliver a state-of-the-art picture of where the field of injury research stands.

The 36 chapters are written by some of the most accomplished researchers in the world. The book allows the reader to appreciate how far the field of injury research has come since its beginning, as reflected by the following:

Injury is no longer considered a result of bad luck; it is not simply an "act of god".

Injury is predictable, preventable, and treatable, and even in a crash, fall, or shooting, there are effective interventions to lessen the risk, severity, and outcome of an injury.

Injury is now widely recognized as a health problem, and in the field of public health and medicine, the word accident is avoided by mentioning the crash, poisoning, fall, or other injury-producing event.

Injury is the subject of rigorous inquiries and interventions from multiple disciplines.

More information: The kindle version of the book is online as Injury Research: Theories, Methods, and Approaches.

Provided by Columbia University

"Accidents don't just happen: New Book on trends and takeaways in injury research." January 31st, 2012. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-accidents-dont-trends-takeaways-injury.html

 

Posted by
Robert Karl Stonjek

Body image not always a drag on women's wellbeing

Deakin University psychology researchers have found that body image isn't always a negative experience for women.

As part of her doctoral research, Rachel Chung from Deakin's School of Psychology is exploring women's experiences of their bodies and how this may be connected to how they feel about themselves in different aspects of their lives.

"The prevailing view on body image is that it is almost normal for women to be dissatisfied with their bodies," Ms Chung said.

"Most research on women's body image focuses on negative aspects, such as women's dissatisfaction with their shape and weight, and adverse factors associated with having a poor body image, such as poor self-esteem or an eating disorder.

"I'm interested in finding out how positive aspects of body image are related to women's sense of well-being."

Around 200 women aged 18 to 76 have already completed the survey for Ms Chung's project.

While past studies have highlighted the negative aspects associated with women's body image, Ms Chung's preliminary findings indicate that body image can also be a positive influence on women's lives.

"How women feel about themselves in general is associated with what they think about their bodies and their attitudes toward their physical health," Ms Chung explained.

"Women who were more accepting of themselves—that is they held positive attitudes towards themselves, accepted their good and bad qualities and past life events—reported that they deliberatively invested in a physically healthy lifestyle.

"The results revealed that for one third of women their body image had a positive impact on their emotional states, eating and exercise and sexual experiences. For one third of women, the impact was negative, and for one third there was no impact of body image on these variables.

"Women's attitudes about their body image were also related to their interpersonal relationships. Specifically, women who had more positive relations with others also reported that their body image had less impact on their lives."

Provided by Deakin University

"Body image not always a drag on women's wellbeing." January 31st, 2012. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-body-image-women-wellbeing.html

 

Posted by
Robert Karl Stonjek