monitored were less likely to revert.
Participants who use Facebook to
manage how other people perceive
them were more likely to revert.
Shutterstock.com/10 FACE
Hooked on Facebook
6
Coaching World
Do you start your day by scrolling
through your Facebook notifications
or find your finger gravitating
toward the “f” key when you open
your Web browser? If so, you’re not
alone: According to social media
usage data compiled by business
blogger Brandon Gaille, 18 percent
of Facebook users can’t go a few
hours without checking the site, and
61 percent of users have to check
Facebook at least once daily. In fact,
the issue of Facebook addiction is so
pervasive that, in 2012, universitybased researchers in Norway
developed the Bergen Facebook
Addiction Scale.
• Subjective mood—A good
mood increased the likelihood
of participants staying off
of Facebook.
• Other social media—Participants
who had other social media
outlets (e.g., Twitter, Instagram)
were less likely to revert.
“These results show just how difficult
daily decisions about social media
use can be,” Baumer said. “In
addition to concerns over personal
addiction, people are reluctant about
corporations collecting, analyzing and
potentially monetizing their personal
information. However, Facebook also
serves numerous important social
functions, in some cases providing
the only means for certain groups to
keep in touch. These results highlight
the complexities involved in people’s
ongoing decisions about how to use,
or not use, social media.”
The study was published in the
December 3, 2015, issue of the online
journal Social Media + Society.
According to recently published
research from Cornell University,
we find it hard to walk away from
Facebook for good reason. A team
led by Cornell informational science
and communication researcher
Eric Baumer used survey data
from 99daysoffreedom.com, an
online campaign that encouraged
participants to take a 99-day hiatus
from Facebook, to identify reasons
why people leave social media and
return (a phenomenon termed “social
media reversion” by the group).
—Abby Tripp Heverin
The Cornell researchers found four
main factors that lead to social
media reversion:
Your Email Habits
Might Be Harmful to
Your Health
• Perceived addiction—Participants
w