It relieves the stress caused by Facebook … on Facebook

An examination of the habits of 444 Facebook users showed that they alternate between a conversation with acquaintances, reading news and updating their profile as each activity becomes stressful. increase the risk of reliance on technology.

Researchers from Lancaster University, Bamberg University and Friedrich-Alexander Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg point out that Facebook is becoming a stress coping mechanism for which he himself is responsible.

Although it may seem paradoxical, there is nothing surprising, assured Nadia Seraiocco, a UQAM PhD student specializing in new media.

The creators of these platforms designed them, and more and more continue to design them, to hold our attention. The network that […] is the cause of our anxiety, instead of distancing ourselves and going to do something else, we will say, "distract yourself here". It can not be healthy.

In the case specifically of Facebook, she said, we tried to reproduce as much as possible of what our daily life was before the arrival of such gigantic platforms, at the time when our online activity was fragmented between several places.

We opened our computer, we went to see our emails, we went on the site of a media, from there we went to see what was happening on YouTube …, she illustrated. While now, when you get on Facebook, you can stay captive on the platform for several hours because whatever you want to do, even a little shopping with Marketplace, you'll find it on the platform. All your friends, practically, are there, the causes and the media you follow also have a presence on Facebook.

And that's what Facebook wants, adds Ms. Seraiocco. There is no chance to hear Facebook mention the possibility of presenting music, movies or even television series on its website.

More time on Facebook, more advertising revenue

It's the idea of ​​keeping us there, because the more you're there, the more time you spend, the more advertising you're going to get, or the data you're going to deliver to the platform has a high market value. That's the point of keeping us there all the timeshe explained.

Several former employees of the company do not hide it besides: everything is designed and designed to hold us as long as possible.

A few years ago, during conferences on the use of social networks, Mrs. Seraiocco remembers advising those present to go out for air when an online conversation became a little too difficult, instead of launch into an endless argumentation.

Here, what we will tell you is rather, "do your relaxation online, on our site, and go to shop for bikes on Marketplace", which is not quite healthy, has she lamented. At some point, we have to get away from it, but we have become used to staying connected. We are in a world a little closed, even if we do not realize it.

The conclusions of the study mentioned in this article are published by the scientific journal Information Systems Journal.