Men more likely to show-off on social media

London, January 14

In order to show-off to friends, collect ‘likes’ on social media and to feel good about themselves, men are more likely to post their privacy away, a study has found.

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The study showed that men are sensitive about how many likes they get on social media and are more likely to reveal something embarrassing or confidential about their co-workers, friends or employers than women.

According to the study, one-in-ten (nine per cent) men would post a photo of themselves naked compared to only 5 per cent of women and 13 per cent of men post photos of their friends wearing something revealing.

"In the hunt for likes, men tend to go even further than women, posting things that present themselves and their friends in a compromising light," Astrid Carolus, media psychologist at the University of Wurzburg in Germany, said in a statement.

Further, men also get upset if they do not get the likes they hope for and 29 per cent of them also admitted they get upset if somebody who matters to them does not like their posts.

Fifteen per cent of men also admitted they would post a photo of friends under the influence of alcohol compared to just 8 per cent of women.

The study "is in line with the assumption of men being rather less focused on social harmony and rather more willing to take risks", Carolus said, adding that this risky behaviour on social media can put people at risk.

In their search for social approval, people have stopped seeing the boundary between what it is okay to share and what is better kept private, the researchers noted.

—IANS