Selfie and self: The effect of selfies on self-esteem and social sensitivity

- The effect of experiencing selfies on individuals' self-concept is examined.
- Taking and sharing a selfie increase individuals' level of social sensitivity.
- Taking a selfie generally decreases individuals' level of self-esteem.
- Taking and just saving a selfie leads to more decrease in the level of self-esteem.
- New measures to minimize the issue of self-reported measures are introduced.

The phenomenon of taking and sharing selfies has become widespread in everyday life. However, previous studies on the selfie have not dealt with the effect of the experience of a selfie. Therefore, we examined the effect of the selfie on people who took and shared their selfies. Based on the social comparison theory, we focused on two psychological factors: social sensitivity and self-esteem. In the experiment, we manipulated the context of experiencing selfies. The participants were asked to take a picture of a self-portrait or a cup, using their own smartphone. Then, they were instructed to either post it on social media or save it on their smartphone. The participants' social sensitivity was assessed by measuring their reaction time (RT) to a social probe, and self-esteem was evaluated by measuring the size of their signatures. We found that participants' RT to a social probe decreased and the size of their signature decreased, after they took and shared their selfie. These results suggest that taking and sharing selfies could result in greater social sensitivity and lower self-esteem of selfie takers.