Whether you’re single or not, there’s nothing more obnoxious than scrolling through social media and finding that one guy or woman whose feed is completely flooded with couple selfies. It’s like every post they make is for the sole purpose of shoving their relationship in everyone else’s faces to try and prove just how happy they are being coupled up. Well, turns out there’s a deeper reason those posts are so obnoxious: they’re not even true. According to a new study, those who constantly post couple selfies are way less happy in real life.
- More than 2,000 people between 18 and 50 were surveyed. The survey, performed by online photography platform Shotkit, asked each of the participants to rate their relationship happiness levels. They were asked more detailed questions as well, like about their communication levels as a couple, their sex lives, how much they trusted their partner, and how often they posted photos with their significant other on social media.
- The happiness levels among the couple most active on social media was were pretty low. Of those who said they share their relationship on social media very often, only 10% classed their relationship as being “very happy.” By comparison, 46% of those who said they rarely post about their partner or their relationship online said they were in a happy relationship. That means something!
- Are trust issues behind the trend? Many people may be posting about their relationship on social media because they want to show the world that their partner is taken and therefore make it less likely that they’ll cheat. Does it work? Not particularly. “There are often mixed views on whether posting on social media regularly has positive effects on us and our relationships,” said Martin Stevens of Shotkit. “We expected there to be some disparities with the survey, but we didn’t know quite how much of a difference it could make, 128% happier is a huge amount!”
- Of course, sharing your relationship on social media isn’t all bad. The results of this study aren’t suggesting that you shouldn’t ever talk about or post photos with your partner online, just that it shouldn’t dominate your life. “This isn’t to say that all social media sharing is bad, of course not. Perhaps the saying ‘too much of a good thing’ is true in this case. We hope that the research provided some insight, and perhaps food for thought for some people,” Stevens explained.
