Study: Facebook abstinence makes you happy
Currently, about 300 million people are registered on Facebook. Thirty million of them post personal updates online every day. However, as a study by the University of Zurich shows, Facebook does not necessarily make people happy, despite the many connections it fosters.
According to the SDA, the study shows that Facebook abstainers are generally more satisfied with their lives than those who maintain virtual contacts on the internet and make their everyday lives public. According to the survey conducted by the Institute of Psychology, non-users are also mentally healthier and are considered more conscientious than extroverted Facebook users. Because they are more conscientious, they are also often more successful at work.
For this study, 1000 people between the ages of 13 and 89 were surveyed, 573 of whom had a Facebook profile. Of the Facebook users, 335 were also active on other networks such as MySpace.
However, this is not the first study on Facebook users: American researchers at Michigan State University had already tackled this topic in 2007 and launched a survey. In contrast to the Zurich researchers, however, they found exactly the opposite, namely that Facebook users are happier and more satisfied than non-users because they are more socially engaged.
For this study, 1000 people between the ages of 13 and 89 were surveyed, 573 of whom had a Facebook profile. Of the Facebook users, 335 were also active on other networks such as MySpace.
However, this is not the first study on Facebook users: American researchers at Michigan State University had already tackled this topic in 2007 and launched a survey. In contrast to the Zurich researchers, however, they found exactly the opposite, namely that Facebook users are happier and more satisfied than non-users because they are more socially engaged.
