Recently the 100 happy days hashtag has littered social media, but to what end? The challenge’s directions, found at 100happydays.com, suggests that people today don’t have time to stop and appreciate what makes them happy in their day-to-day lives. To participate in the challenge, you simply photograph things that make you happy each day, for 100 days, and then upload these pictures to Facebook or Instagram with the #100happydays hashtag. This seems like a great idea, right? Let’s all take time to appreciate the little things in life and spread that joy to the world. But, wait. Are we really spreading joy to others by posting pictures of all the cool things we do? This serves to remind us of the negative aspects of social media. Are they inherent even in the happiness challenge?
A recent study about the effects of Facebook on users that was conducted over a fourteen-day period found that participants were less happy as the study progressed. The researchers tested to see if loneliness impacted these results, and found that indeed, it did. Participants were using Facebook at times when they felt lonelier, thus their happiness decreased. However, when researchers then did the experiment and controlled the loneliness “variable,” they still found decreased happiness. So, what does this mean? Perhaps people become less content with their own lives when faced with strings of images of the most perfect moments in the lives of others. We’ve all spent a lazy Sunday afternoon perusing Facebook, scrolling through pictures that everyone has been tagged in over the weekend. But what if you didn’t do anything that weekend? Fear of missing out afflicts many of us, and seeing events that we didn’t attend over the weekend has the potential to make anyone a little bummed. So, even if we log on to Facebook, or Instagram perfect content, we may leave less happy than before. It’s the adult equivalent of being in sixth grade and having someone tell you about the coolest birthday party you weren’t invited to.
The results of this study can be applied to the 100 happy days challenge. If people are constantly uploading pictures to Facebook and Instagram, not only will their use of social media increase (and thus, make them more unhappy), but they will also provide photos to make others unhappy. This seems to defeat the purpose of the challenge. On the website, the creators say, “It is not a happiness competition or a showing off contest. If you try to please/make others jealous via your pictures- you lose without even starting.” Inherently, however, social media tends to be about showing off. So, why not take this challenge off of social media? It truly is a great idea, but social media is the wrong platform. I urge the Her Campus readers to find what makes them happy independently of the campaign. Write a journal, make your own photo album, or do anything that is independent of social media. You will find your daily life more fulfilling if you participate in this challenge for yourself, and not for the world to see. After all, Pharrell says, “clap along if you know what happiness is to you.” Find out what happiness is for you, not for others, and enjoy it!
Sources:
http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.00698…