A research group has launched a campaign to find out just how many Facebook addicts dare go a full 99 days without their beloved social networks, having once again suggested that social networking is the root-cause of everyday discontent.
It’s a plain and simple fact…or at least so studies would suggest…Facebook makes you miserable. Not that Zuckerberg and his cronies are to blame directly of course, but it’s been proven time and time again that the world’s fixation with 24/7 social networking is little more than a curse to general wellbeing.
Why is this is the case? A variety of reasons, though experts suggest it largely comes down to the gaining of a completely unrealistic perspective into the lives of others. Facebook is used by about 99.9% of people to show off their best photos, brag of their best times and generally present their popularity and greatness to the world…all of which subconsciously causes their ‘friends’ to question their own happiness and merit.
Which of course begs the question – how much better would any of us feel if we binned-off Facebook for three months? Think about it; no having to pretend you like people you hate, no seeing your ex with a new partner far better looking than you and no more vile picture of you being tagged for everyone’s amusement.
That’s precisely what a new project/challenge called ’99 Days of Freedom’ is urging the public to consider. Cooked up by a Dutch research firm by the name of Just, the company suggests uploading a time-off picture and calling it quits for 99 days, during which time those signing up for the experiment will be polled on their happiness.
“Like a lot of Facebook users, many of us were bothered by reports of secret mood experiments,” said Merijn Straathof, Art Director for Just.
“As we discussed it internally, we noted an interesting tendency: Everyone had at least a ‘complicated’ relationship with Facebook. Whether it was being tagged in unflattering photos, getting into arguments with other users, or simply regretting time lost through excessive use, there was a surprising degree of negative sentiment,”
“Then someone joked, ‘I guess that the real question is, ‘How do you feel when you don’t use Facebook?’ There was group laughter, followed by, ‘Wait a second. That’s a really good question!'”
Of course there’s a big difference between signing up and actually going cold-turkey on Facebook for a month – we’d be inclined to bet that less than one in every dozen recruits sticks to their guns.