Mental Health

'Slacktivism': Know Why Social Media Likes Can Potentially Kill Activism

By Abbie Kraft | Update Date: Feb 21, 2017 07:40 AM EST

Social media took its toll not only when it comes to technological advancements, but it also impacts an individual's mental health and even personal relationships. Social media does not only make communication and marketing one's products easier, but it was reported that it highly impacts an individual's self-worth through the likes they'd get on their posts.

Psychology Today pointed out that social media likes can potentially eliminate activism as "Slacktivism" is starting to rise. It may be a new term, as some would refer to is something most millennials would convey, Slacktivism is a movement wherein an individual would push for something or create a movement in order for them to gather likes and remarks on social media.

Slacktivism is a social movement or political movement that is pushed on social media with which required minimal time and involvement. It was then added that the term also caters to an action supporting a cause with little to no significance such as hitting the like button to "save something".

A research that was published in the journal of Consumer Research, performed five studies wherein participants were tasked to make a movement wherein the action would be in support of a social cause.

"Providing public (as opposed to private) token support for a cause leads to a resolution of impression-management motives, which, in turn, leads to a lower likelihood of agreeing to provide meaningful support for the cause," the researchers wrote as a result of their study.

As the research progressed, the team came up with a conclusion where it was discussed that getting affirmation through likes after a noble deed, or a movement does boost one's morale. It was mentioned that more often than not, people individuals would usually question their own motive where it seems normal or think about how other would act with one's behavior, especially if it is publicly exposed.

It may seem unusual, but the majority would often consider how much likes they would get before pushing for a movement, thus social media "Likes" can potentially kill activism and slowly replace it with slacktivism.

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