Social media might be making us narcissists, but it's worth it. Fact: People are more connected than ever. We are so connected that we might have become too obsessed with ourselves. We document every living moment on Facebook, share every irrelevant thought with our Twitter followers, and make videos of our private moments for the world to see on YouTube. All of this makes me wonder: Is social media turning us into a society of narcissists, or is it making us a more connected and powerful human race? A recent study by Soraya Mehdizadeh, a York University psychology student, found that social media does indeed make young people more narcissistic and insecure, simply because it makes them crave constant validation from their peers.
“We all know people like this. They’re updating their status every five minutes and the photos they post are very carefully construed,” concluded Mehdizadeh. But even with the narcissistic and “stalkerish” (that’s a whole other post!) Social media really does put the world at our fingertips. Do you agree? Has Social Media Affected Your Personality? Today’s generation of college students has been shaped by many factors including family, environment and personal experiences – but have you ever wondered how social media has contributed to our lifestyle and behaviors? As natives to the Internet, Millennials (also known as Generation Y) were born with the World Wide Web, went to middle school with Xanga and MySpace, started high school with YouTube and Facebook, departed for college with Twitter and FourSquare and are preparing for the workforce with LinkedIn. The Internet’s instant-nature of information, broad reach of media influence and public palette for our individual thoughts has inevitably affected us greatly.
We Millennials have capitalized on creating a personal brand that directly correlates with our personalities. Whether you’ve realized it or not, everything from your profile picture, personal information, updates, daily interactions and even your typing style (dO u WRiite lyk tHiS??) So what do we all have in common? 1. Late-Night Gadget Use Damages Your Sleep Cycle [INFOGRAPHIC] Does this sound familiar? You're lying in bed, ostensibly ready for dreamland. But first, you grab your smartphone and set the requisite six alarms (all of them blaring the Star Wars theme).
But while you've got your phone out, you might as well text your buddy back like you meant to. Plus, now is the perfect time to plow through those 11 games of Gems With Friends that have been on hold. Oh, and there was that sloth video you never got around to watching on YouTube. SEE ALSO: Free iPhone App Tracks Sleep, Gives Expert Advice It's a perfectly normal routine. Check out this infographic from OnlinePsychologyDegree.net and think it over next time you're thinking about spooning with Siri.
Thumbnail image courtesy of iStockphoto, annebaek. Trouble Sleeping? Your Tablet or Smartphone Could Be to Blame. Are you having more trouble sleeping since you got your iPad or Samsung Galaxy S II? That comes as no surprise to researchers at the Lighting Research Center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, who've found that two or more hours of exposure to backlit devices suppresses melatonin. This suppression, especially in teenagers, can lead to trouble sleeping at night, according to researchers led by Mariana Figueiro, director of the LRC's Light and Health Program. "Our study shows that a two-hour exposure to light from self-luminous electronic displays can suppress melatonin by about 22%," Figueiro says in a statement.
"Stimulating the human circadian system to this level may affect sleep in those using the devices prior to bedtime. " SEE ALSO: 10 iPhone Apps for a Better Night's Sleep Wondering how this problem can be solved as we become even more dependent on our devices? Figueiro recommends dimming your backlit devices at night to minimize melatonin suppression.