You may think the pictures you take of yourself and post to social media are pretty fantastic, but your peers probably don’t think so, according to U of T psychologist Daniel Re, who recently looked at how people rate “selfies.”
“This topic was more lighthearted than the things we usually observe,” says Re, whose research team found that frequent selfie-takers liked their own selfies better than other people who were asked to rate those same pics.
In fact, according to the study, even selfie-takers who claimed they disliked the narcissism they associated with other people’s pictures of themselves still rated their own selfies higher than anyone else rated them.
“That was a real surprise,” Re says. “They seem to be aware that people don’t like seeing a bunch of selfies of others, but when you ask people who hate selfies to rate their own, they rate them really high – almost as if they’d forgotten what they just said.
“People take so many of these pictures, they trick themselves into thinking they’re doing a good job at it,” says Re. “Ironically, by doing so, they may be making themselves look more narcissistic and less attractive.”
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3 Responses to “ Know Thy Selfie ”
People attend much more to their own photos. So they tend to notice things that others do not. People may also resent the indulgence of others. I don't always... I like looking at selfies.
Great topic, however very disappointing conclusion. I expected more scientific support about selfie taking disorder.
Selfie sticks can do wonders in the correct hand!