Posts Tagged anonymity and eye contact

Stress and Social Media

On August 10, 2017   /   Blog, Stress Management  
stress and social media

Many people experience stress while on social media sites. Part of the reason for the stress relates to the comments and interactions that take place. What often starts as an innocent post often takes a turn for the worse, as commenters virtually “duke it out” regarding who is right and who is wrong. Heated arguments ensue, often filled with name calling and downright meanness. Even people who would never dream of being mean to others in face-to-face interactions take part.

Stress, Social Media, and Eye Contact

Often, mean comments online arise more from a lack of eye contact than from anonymity.

The fact is that people are meaner online than in real life. Many have blamed this on anonymity and … >>>

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Mean Comments and the Internet

On September 6, 2012   /   Effectiveness, Relationships  

Have you noticed that people are often meaner online than in real life? Many have blamed this on anonymity and invisibility, because when you are online no one knows who you are or what you look like. However, new research suggests that we may have a tendency to be nasty on the Internet because we do not make eye contact with those with whom we are communicating.

For example, a recent study demonstrated this point by having their subjects look into their partner’s eyes and predict how mean they were. When their eyes were hidden, participants were twice as likely to be hostile. Even if the subjects were both unrecognizable (with only their eyes on the screen) and anonymous, they … >>>

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