The Selfie Syndrome

[PalJoey]

Posted: 12/28/13 at 10:00pm

This seems to sort of describe everyone I know, whether they take and post "selfies" or not.

Basically, you take a narcissist, add Facebook--which gives the narcissist a "social mirror"--and then you add Twitter--which gives the narcissist a social megaphone that over-inflates the importance of the narcissist's opinions.

And then you add Instagram, and--voila!--the narcissist has a photo gallery. And life becomes an addiction to how many "likes" you can get.

But read the--what is it?--article? blog? post? thing?



Selfie Syndrome – How Social Media is Making Us Narcissistic

[PalJoey]

Posted: 12/28/13 at 10:06pm

I have been informed: It's an "infographic."

[sondheimboy2]

Posted: 12/28/13 at 10:49pm

I don't take and post pictures of myself on Facebook.

I guess I have low selfie-esteem.

[StockardFan]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 3:44am

Any selfie I've tried to take (ie: to show a new haircut) has turned out terrible so I never posted them.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 8:34am

Interesting "infographic", indeed.

Most of the things they identify as narcissism, my colleagues and I tagged as being entitlement -- I guess the terms aren't all that different.

[artscallion]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 8:53am

"Is narcissism an inevitable reaction to our social culture?"

or is our social culture an inevitable reaction to our already existing narcissism? It claims that people who scored high in narcissism also posted more often on twitter as if twitter was causing the narcissism. Maybe it's just that people who are already narcissistic are the ones more likely to post on twitter to begin with.

The also say the facebook is implicated in 1/3 of divorces as if facebook is somehow contributing to divorces. There's no cause/effect data shown. Maybe facebook is implicated in those divorces because facebook just happens to be our current method of social communication. Back in the day, handwritten letters were probably implicated in 1/3 of divorces.

Old people have been saying this kind of stuff about young people and what they do for centuries.

Updated On: 12/29/13 at 08:53 AM

[Jane2]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 10:46am

I take a lot of selfies. I only show them to myself. The reason? As a photographer, I strive to one day taking a good picture of myself. Hasn't happened yet.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 11:11am

I say we start by banning all autobiographies. I mean did I need to know that Patti LuPone had crabs or Julia Phillips had a live-in lover who was a drug dealer or that Judi Dench's daughter burned the house down?

[Platypus]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 11:14am

I find myself tempted to to post this on Facebook. Would that be hypocritical?

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 1:09pm

I say live and let live. Let people do what they want with their facebook/instagram/twitter accounts. If it bothers someone that much block them or hide the posts from the general news feed. It's really that simple. We can't control what other people choose to do, we are only responsible for ourselves.

[Jane2]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 1:18pm

exactly, Carlos.

And who says EVERYONE who posts SELFIES is a narcissist? Lots of people are out and about, having fun, and want to post themselves and their friends in that place!

I realize that what I just said might define narcissism for some people, but not for me.

Updated On: 12/29/13 at 01:18 PM

[Addison D.]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 1:29pm

Amen, Carlos.

Why the need to label and then judge other people's activity?

In order to be overwhelmed and/or disturbed by other people's Tweets, posts, Vines, comments, Instagrams and Candygrams, one has to choose to consume them to excess.

Presumably, everybody can find their own, perfect balance of appetite and consumption.

[Marianne2]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 2:05pm

Yeah, I'm not sure really what to make of this. I actually feel a little insulted about the link to mental disorders. I have ADHD and depression and generally am not a narcissist. I know I can be sometimes, but I think we all probably are at one time or another. And I know people who are supposedly "normal" who are far worse with the selfies and bragging about every moment of their life.

[Jane2]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 2:39pm

Well, I for one am delighted when my friends and relatives post selfles from wherever they are. It keeps me in touch with what's happening with them. Checking my newsfeed is a lot quicker and easier than calling everyone I know to see what's up. Keep it com in, folks!

[SweetLips]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 3:29pm

To Jane2-I put my own photo here as I like the happy memory of it and who I am[what does that make me?].There are many ugly photos of myself I throw away but others say 'that's a good one'.We usually daily only have the 'front on' perspective[not profile,thank God].I suppose it's how DO we want to see ourselves? A photo is more like what I was doing 'at the time' than a portrait.Ask friends what they think of the ones you don't like--I am sure you will get a different reaction to each one-you could already have taken the one you are looking for.

[Jane2]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 3:40pm

thanks sweet lips, I know what you're talking about.
Well yes, there are two kinds of selfles-the one that simply records an event, and I am not vain enough to care how I look in those. I don't care how I look in anyone's photos. My reason for all the selfles I take is that I know the camera never lies. What I see in my selfie is not what I picture in my mind, so the challenge is to capture an expression that matches how I feel.

You are so right on.

Updated On: 12/29/13 at 03:40 PM

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 3:46pm

I don't want to accept what I look like...

This broke my heart a little bit Jane...and if I knew you I would want to give you a big old hug and a kiss and tell you not to be so hard on yourself! xoxoxo

[Jane2]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 5:04pm

Oh Carlos, sweetheart. I'm ok. just very critical of myself. It's all in my mind. People like the way I look and sometimes I do too. I should reword my post. xoxox

[PalJoey]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 5:41pm

More on Selfies in a NYT op-ed by James Franco.






NY TIMES: The Meanings of the Selfie by James Franco

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 6:32pm

I never want James to stop taking selfies. He's one absolutely gorgeous man. He can inundate me with his selfies every single day. I won't ever get tired of looking at them.

[trentsketch]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 6:50pm

The only time I take a selfie to share online is when I'm officially covering a fan convention for a publication. I either just got to meet the coolest celebrity ever or I'm falling apart in full cosplay and want a sad clown moment. Like, makeup running off the face, seams ripping apart, wig falling off tragedies. That's it. Everything else would be photos without me in them.

[JohnBoy2]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 7:17pm

Other than detesting the term, "selfie", I have no issue with people taking a photo of themselves to use as a profile pic, or to show them with friends having fun, etc. Those that do have an issue suffer from low self esteem, and probably shouldn't be involved with something called social media.

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 12/29/13 at 8:23pm

This is the first I have ever heard of taking a photo of oneself that includes one's face and sharing it over the internet.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 12/30/13 at 12:00am

There oughta be a term for posting headless pictures of yourself naked.

[SNAFU]

Posted: 12/31/13 at 1:42pm

Torsies!