Social Networking: Talking About Ourselves

Source: Psychology Degree (detail)

The infographic, The Psychology of Social Networking from Psychology Degree, breaks down the world of social media and shows how much it is an integral part of people’s lives.

It seems we love talking about ourselves, even though nine out of ten people think we share too much. According to this graphic, when we reveal information about our own lives, it activates the part of the brain associated with satisfaction.

The numbers are staggering, and perhaps they should give us pause to think about how they affect the students we teach. From status updates, tweets, and adding friends, it seems Americans spend one out of every five minutes online using social media.

Source: Psychology Degree (detail)

Who knew that over 250 million photos are updated daily, or that 35% of people tag themselves in pictures? In other words, they become searchable. Yet how many schools actually teach students, or adults for that matter, what tagging means?

There’s a tech lesson here, and it’s not just for students. Teachers need to know just how much social media plays into the lives of our current generation of kids. If we want to encourage digital citizenship and understand their world of social media, we should take note of the details in this infographic.