Social media has an impact on the way people choose to portray themselves on social media. I for one know that I am affected by this cloud that social media plays in our life. For example, when I am deciding what to instagram I post the picture I feel that I look the best in and the one that I think will get the most likes. This is for a few reasons. Reason number one is that I want people to feel a certain way about me. What I mean is that, especially since being abroad a part of me wants people to look at my accounts and think “wow her pictures are amazing, it looks like she is having the best time ever.” And while that statement is true, it is nice to have confirmation from other people that they feel the same way I do. In a way I am “faking” who I am on social media by posting only the best pictures of myself, but at the same time social media is not a place to vent to and show my weakest moments. I feel that certain apps are used for different purposes on how we portray what we are doing and how we are feeling. As I just said on instagram I post pictures I look the best in from different highlights from that specific activity I am doing. But on snapchat, I am posting more minute by minute pictures and my followers/streaks so the more “real” me. By the “real” me I mean that on snapchat I will send someone a picture of me upset, or a picture of me sitting down while we are out instead of partying on the dance floor.
Not only do I portray myself a certain way on social media for abroad reasons, but I also take into account what we discussed in class about relationships. Portraying yourself in a certain way on social media relates to the formation of relationships because in our generation and society social media is the best way to gain information about someone. For example, if I meet someone new and we follow each other on Instagram I normally go and see if we have any mutual friends. By seeing someone that we have in common I am able to either reach out to that mutual friend or make a connection between them. While this is for any relationship in life, the idea of romantic relationships and social media also plays a role in the topics that we have been discussing.
I was in a relationship for two years and I do think social media plays a large presence in the development, evolvement, and eventually the termination of a relationship. When a relationship begins in our generation it becomes a big deal to become “insta official” with them and to show to the world that the two of you are together. It is almost laughable that this is a huge step for a relationship when back in the day this never would have existed or even been predicted. As relationships go on you are able to keep your followers invested in your relationship by the amount you post, the things you share of one another, and everything that you do with each other. By doing so, I look at this as one’s way to gain confidence about their relationships through the likes and comments of other people. However, the downside of this is that when relationships end, some people change their social media. They might delete the pictures, change captions, etc. By doing so it is a nonverbal way of telling your followers and social circle of what is going on in your life.
In the movie we watched during class, it takes the insecurity of relationships to a new level. I found this movie to be relatable in that when you are in a relationship with someone and you are maybe skeptical that they are doing something behind your back the first instinct you have to find out information is to go on social media. The movie represents that by doing this it could make your situation worse and really show your true colors to your significant other and just the world in general.
Overall, what I am trying to say in this post is that we show the highlights of our life on most social media. I truly do not think anyone is the exact same in their everyday life as they are on social media and this is because of a lack of confidence. We live in a world where self-esteem is based off of content from social media sites and likes on a post. Because this is the norm people display incorrect information about themselves and result to lying about who they are, and in extreme cases they truly “catfish” someone else.
References
Cohen, Marissa T. “Social Media and Relationships.” Psychology Today. December 4, 2018. Accessed March 13, 2019. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/finding-love-the-scientific-take/201812/social-media-and-relationships.
“Identity in a Digital World: A New Chapter in the Social Contract.” World Economic Forum. September 25, 2018. Accessed March 13, 2019. https://www.weforum.org/reports/identity-in-a-digital-world-a-new-chapter-in-the-social-contract.
Jaymi Zimmerman Abroad 