Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Psychology of the "Like" Button

Anonymous just finished class for the week and has returned to her dorm room. She takes her laptop out of her backpack and turns it on. After letting her computer start up, she opens an internet browser, types in “face,” and the browser program recognizes that she wants to go to “facebook.com” and she is automatically sent there. She logs onto Facebook and waits for her homepage to load. After looking through some of her friends statuses, she decides to “like” a particular status that is pertinent to her own feelings about the upcoming weekend.

The scenario described above exemplifies a very common interaction that Facebook users could have with the “like” button. But what is a “like” and why do Facebook users indulge in it? The most neutral definition I could come up with for “Facebook like button” is an option on the Facebook website that allows users to provide feedback on stories that other friends have posted, whether that be a picture, wall post status, etc. The like button is a feature that allows users to acknowledge their friends’ items. Before we dive into exploring the often nebulous and intricate workings of human psychology, let’s discuss ways Facebook users can use the “like” button.

1.       Status updates: A friend puts up a new status about a life goal, an inspiring quote, an accomplishment, or an event they are enjoying, dreading, afraid for, etc.
2.       Relationship status: A friend tells the Facebook world that they are currently committed to some sort of relationship. Or, maybe, in a more unfortunate circumstance, they tell the Facebook world that there was a break up.
3.       Pictures: A friend puts up new pictures of an event, a place, a trip, etc.
4.       Wall post: A friend posts a link, picture, video, etc on another friend or the user’s own wall.
5.       Comments: A friend comments under a picture, status, wall post, note, group, event and the user is allowed to like that specific comment.
6.       Fan Page/Place/Business/University/etc.: Informational pages about the preceding entities are allowed to be “liked” by the user.
7.       Friendships: A friend accepts your friend request or a friend is recently friends with someone else. The user is allowed to “like” this interaction.

So many options!! Don’t people typically think “the more features, the more interesting and worthy the product?” Facebook recently released statistics saying over 65 million users “like” things daily. But what really drives people to use the “like” button. The most common reason is to show positive feedback for the update. Showing approval, encouragement, engaging in the sarcasm presented in an update, or proving a point are all reasons to “like” an update, whatever it may be.

With regard to ways the “like” button can pose negative feedback, it all depends on the perspective. Let’s say a friend just broke up with his nagging, controlling, awful girlfriend. Over 15 people like this relationship status change. What is encouraging and motivational (in the sense that he made the right decision) the guy can be devastating to the girl who was dumped. The like button is an influential tool that can boost or shatter one’s ego depending on their perspective and the context the “like” was performed in.

But why do people care enough to even bother to do this? Humans are interactive and social beings. Participating in other peoples’ lives is often necessary for comfort and satisfaction in a person’s daily life. Why do people care whether or not their updates become “liked?” For the same reason that people even bother to like- humans need interaction and approval from others to feel satisfaction about their own lives. Yes, the like button in many ways enables egotism. But, hey, apparently people need it and thrive off of it. Even without being asked, a person can make a statement in another’s life. The power of the “like” button can be reassuring to one person but devastating to another.

-          Shilpa Apte

Ps: Food for Thought- Does the “like” button help Facebook thrive in the way it does? Without the “like” button, providing the feedback that encourages the user to keep updating wouldn’t be facilitated as easily. The “like” button is a fast and simple way to encourage more Facebook usage.

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