Oct 26, 2009 6:11 pm US/Eastern
Suffering From Facebook Fatigue?
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
Facebook is just as popular with adults, as it is with teens these days. Many adults are trying to learn a new set of rules when it comes to interacting with friends and acquaintances online.
Steve Boyle is one of those adults who is feeling more connected to his past, courtesy of Facebook. "It's a class reunion every day, if you want it to be," he said.
But it's not always fun. When Steve logs on Facebook or
Twitter, he always has to plow through a slew of worthless status updates. "After a while, it just gets annoying."
More Facebook users are echoing Steve's sentiments, and this syndrome has been nicknamed
Facebook Fatigue. It's causing many people to see their online friends in a whole new light.
TOO MUCH INFORMATION
Dr. Patricia Wallace is a psychologist who wrote
The Psychology of the Internet. She said users often post mundane comments and don't even realize it. "When you say 'I had pancakes for breakfast and I'm leaving the house', you can't really see the other person yawning."
Social networks also expose us to a wider circle of more people, many of them just casual acquaintances.
"You could get fatigued if those 250 casual friends are sharing information you don't really care about," said Dr. Jan Yager, a psychologist who specializes in friendship. "Most people do care about the
status updates of a small circle of friends."
While some postings are just plain boring, others are boastful and self promotional. "I'd be lying if I said I didn't get friends that brag or gloat about what they're doing on their job," Boyle said. "It gets tedious."
PROPER ETIQUETTE
Dr, Wallace says the problem is this is a whole new social arena for people and they have
new rules to learn. For example, she cites the quandary many people feel when it comes to responding to messages in a timely manner. "This really relates to the fact that we don't know what the rules should be. One trick I frequently use is I will just send back an email saying 'Thanks for your note. I'll get back to you in a few days'."
Another issue is about what information should be posted. "Run it by a focus group of one: just yourself," Wallace recommends. "Reread what you're about to post and imagine yourself to be one of the readers."
If you become frustrated with some of the information people are supplying, Dr; Yager says try to express your concerns directly and politely. "Think about how important the friendship is to you, and then do it [respond] in a kind and caring, and if possible, humorous, way."
FILTER YOUR FEEDS
If that doesn't work, you have plenty of options. You can stop following a friend, or sort through the
Facebook options that let you choose who to see updates from. For Twitter, you can download tools such as
TweetDeck, that allow you to separate the people you follow into smaller groups, making it easier to see the updates of a select few.
These tricks only take a few minutes, and might make all the difference.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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