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Josh Zollman

Dr. O’Hara

English Rhetoric and Civic Life I: Section 13

16 November 2012

#SelfishCultureProblems: The Rise of a Self-Centered Culture

In today’s social networking world, hash tags (#) are about as ubiquitous as

trees in a forest. The hash tag is generally used on social networking sites such as

Twitter to categorize a message, or “Tweet,” by keyword. Recently, a movement

began in which Twitter users began to publically post their personal problems or

issues, followed by the catchphrase, “#problems.” Some notable Tweets of this ilk

include, “I want to drive out and get food but I’m not fit to be seen by the public…

#problems,” “Might have to rethink my [Halloween] costume for tonight with this

weather… #problems,” and “I’m on my laptop, home computer, iPod and cellphone

#problems.” Forget about impoverished children starving in Zimbabwe. Forget

about the estimated 577,190 men and women that will die of cancer in 2012

(Cancer Facts & Figures 2012). Clearly, these Twitter users have the real problems.

While it is undoubtedly important for people to have methods for venting their

personal frustrations and misfortunes—no matter how small, the use of Twitter and

other social networking sites as an outlet for trivial, personal information reflects a

distressing social trend: a rise in a self-focused, or “selfish” culture. While

selfishness is nothing new, (Plato and Aristotle philosophized about it thousands of

years ago) there has been an unmistakable cultural shift in self-centered behavior

and attitudes in the United States, especially since the technology boom of the

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1990s. This meteoric rise in self-focused behavior, brought about by various

technological advancements, including the advent of portable digital cameras, the

development of the Internet, and widespread use of online social networks, has led

to troubling increases in the prevalence of depression, egotistic tendencies, and

destructive behavior.

A multitude of scientific evidence demonstrates a rise in selfish behavioral

tendencies, especially amongst younger generations. The media provides an

expansive foundation of information from which to base this evidence. For example,

psychological researchers, attempting to measure levels of self-focus in American

culture, carried out a study in which they counted the number of first-person

singular pronouns in each year’s top 10 most popular songs from 1980 to 2007. The

results showed a steady increase in the quantity of first-person pronouns from year

to year, and the researchers argue that this increase in the quantity of self-

references in popular music reflects increasing self-focus in American culture (Elliot,

Wilson, and Akert 110). This research demonstrates the manner in which popular

culture reflects the values of the population. Another study carried out by social

psychologists supports the notion that young Americans are thinking about

themselves for remarkably large portions of the day. The researchers asked random

high school students what they were thinking about at various points in the day, and

found that males and females were thinking about themselves 32% and 42% of the

day, respectively. Additional studies have suggested this these percentages have

been increasing over time (Elliot, Wilson, and Akert). Research carried out by Jean

Twenge, Professor of Psychology at San Diego State University, has also

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demonstrated distressing trends in selfish behavior among young Americans. Her

research on narcissism, defined in psychology as “the combination of excessive self-

love and lack of empathy towards others,” indicates increasing levels of this kind of

behavior among college students (Elliot, Wilson, and Akert 131). While there exists

a mass of research revealing increasing selfish tendencies among Americans, one

needs only to look around to notice societal tendencies that also reflect this cultural

shift. The invention of the Apple iPod for example, led to a cascade of other ‘I” and

“me” products, such as the iPhone, iPad, and MobileMe. The naming of these

products represents a clear marketing strategy designed to play off of consumer’s

desires to have their own, personalized products all for themselves. It is no fluke

that the rise of these products has coincided with the increasing trends of self-

focused attitudes and behaviors that scientific studies have established.

While it is evident that a more self-centered culture is developing in America,

identifying the underlying causes of the cultural shift is crucial in understanding its

potential effects. One thing is clear: the Internet is largely responsible for the shift.

More specifically, online social networking appears to be the chief culprit. Social

networks, such as Facebook, place an emphasis on creating personal profiles and

sharing personal information. Users are constantly changing information about

themselves on their profiles; this requires a constant self-focus. Facebook also

makes it extremely easy to view photos and videos of both yourself and others,

which is important for two reasons. First, the social comparison theory of

psychology explains that simply looking at a photograph or video of oneself causes

people to think about themselves. (Elliot, Wilson, and Akert 110). Second, the theory

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argues that seeing images of others causes people to compare themselves to those

they see, eventually leading them to think back to themselves again. (Elliot, Wilson,

and Akert 122). With steady increases in digital camera sales ($140 million units in

2010 to $145 million units in 2011), as well as the increasing popularity of

smartphones with digital cameras, there are more and more opportunities for us to

see each other, and ourselves, online (Camera Industry: Market Research Reports).

This is trend is reflected in the steadily increasing number of photo uploads to

Facebook per year. In fact, a staggering 250 million photos are uploaded per day to

the site (Facebook Statistics). Author Tom Vanderbilt, in an article in The Wilson

Quarterly, builds off of this by explaining, “There are signs of an ongoing cultural

shift [of increased internet usage].” According to CQ researcher, Facebook

membership is now over 500 million and membership to Twitter has surpassed 140

million (Clemmit). With so many people creating accounts on Facebook and Twitter,

posting messages, and uploading photos, it’s hard not to engage in social

comparison. The fact remains: the more opportunities we have to compare

ourselves to others, the more we do. This makes us more self-centered, whether we

realize it or not. Research on the social effects of the Internet has proved this trend

time and time again, and it has also shown that “social networking sites […] lead to

egotistical and antisocial behavior” (Derbyshire). Furthermore, some researchers

strongly suspect that social networking may favor narcissistic behavior, too

(Clemmit). All of these studies clearly show the Internet and online social

networking are major players in the rise self-centeredness in American culture.

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The consequences of this self-centered culture are as far-reaching as they are

dangerous. Most significantly, selfish behavior is strongly linked to depression.

There has been a clear rise in the rates of depression and anxiety over the last two

decades. Depression, a UK based website devoted to treating clinical depression,

attributes the rising rates to America’s “self focused” society (Tyrell, Roger). The site

explains that depression rates are dramatically higher in societies where individual

concerns are valued above group concerns. The site further contends that in today’s

individualistic society, “The idea of considering the wider community to be more

important than the self is almost impossible to understand for most people” (Tyrell

and Roger). The connection between self-focus and depression rates is also

exhibited by a shift from intrinsic goals, such as becoming a better person, to

extrinsic goals, such as achieving a high income and looking good (Gray). Self-

focused cultures breed this shift. For example, Twenge, building upon her research

on narcissism, suggests that the “shift from intrinsic to extrinsic goals represents a

real shift toward a culture of materialism, transmitted through television and other

media.” The shift towards external goals relates directly to depression rates, as

those with external goals also tend to feel as though they have less control in their

lives—a key factor in depression. Dr. Martin Seligman, a psychologist at the

University of Pennsylvania, believes that higher depression rates are also related to

“the ascendance of individualism and a waning of […] support from the community,”

further demonstrating the way in which a self-centered culture breeds depression

(Goleman).

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One underlying psychological theory helps explain the rising rates of

depression. As referenced earlier, the social comparison theory contends that

people learn about their abilities and attitudes by comparing themselves to other

people. Two kinds of social comparison are possible: upward and downward.

Upward social comparison occurs when people compare themselves to those they

deem superior. This often leads to dissatisfaction and depression. The New Yorker

published a cartoon in 1991 with the caption: “Of course you’re going to be

depressed if you keep comparing yourself with successful people.” This holds true

today with online social networking. Conversely, downward social comparison

occurs when people compare themselves with those they deem “inferior.” This can

lead to an inflated sense of power and narcissism. As social networking sites such as

Facebook facilitate both upward and downward social comparison, increasing rates

of both depression and narcissism can be traced back to these social networks. The

negative effects of social comparison have also been elucidated in a study carried

out by social psychologists, who found that the more often people think about

themselves, the more likely they are to be in a bad mood. Furthermore, when people

become dissatisfied with themselves, a key result of upward social comparison, they

tend to look for ways to escape their negative feelings, often with “increased alcohol

use, binge eating, and sexual masochism” (Elliot, Wilson, and Akert 111). It is no

surprise that those “who prefer the online social world to the face-to-face-world

tend to be more depressed,” as Scott Caplan, a communications professor at the

University of Delaware, argues (Clemmit). The bottom line: as more and more

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people are using online social networks and are comparing themselves to each other

as result, the rates of depression and narcissism are bound to increase.

Robert J. Samuelson, a Newsweek columnist, recently commented, “We face a

choice between a society where people accept modest sacrifices for a common good

or a more contentious society where groups selfishly protect their own benefits”

(Velasquez, Andre, Shanks, and Meyer). The choice is ours. We can either perpetuate

this increasingly self-centered society, or we can change our behavior to help curb

its spread and prevent its negative effects. One of the major ways we can do this is

by changing the way we use online social networks. By using social networks as a

catalyst for positive social change, instead of as an outlet for personal information,

we may able to help prevent the rise of this self-centered culture.

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Works Cited

Aronson, Elliot, Timothy D. Wilson, and Robin M. Akert. Social Psychology.

Boston: Pearson, 2013. Print.

"Camera Industry: Market Research Reports, Statistics and

Analysis." Camera Industry: Market Research Reports, Statistics and Analysis.

N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Nov. 2012.

<http://www.reportlinker.com/ci02061/Camera.html>.

Cancer Facts & Figures 2012. Rep. American Cancer Society, 2012. Web. 4 Nov. 2012.

Clemmitt, M. (2010, September 17). Social networking. CQ Researcher, 20, 749-

772. Retrieved from http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/

Derbyshire, David. "Social Networking Sites Harm Children's Brains." Are Social

Networking Sites Harmful? Ed. Stefan Kiesbye. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2011.

At Issue. Rpt. from "Social Websites Harm Children's Brains: Chilling Warning

to Parents from Top Neuroscientist." Daily Mail 24 Feb. 2009. Gale Opposing

Viewpoints In Context. Web. 28 Oct. 2012.

Gray, Peter. "The Dramatic Rise of Anxiety and Depression in

Children and Adolescents." Psychology Today. Psychology Today, 26 Jan. 2010.

Web. 04 Nov. 2012.

<http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/freedom-learn/201001/the-dramatic-rise-

anxiety-and-depression-in-children-and-adolescents-is-it>.

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“Facebook Statistics” Newrooms.fb.com. Web. 4 Nov. 2012

Goleman, Daniel. "A Rising Cost Of Modernity: Depression." The

New York Times. The New York Times, 08 Dec. 1992. Web. 04 Nov. 2012.

<http://www.nytimes.com/1992/12/08/science/a-rising-cost-of-modernity-

depression.html?pagewanted=all>.

Haggerty, M. (2010, August 27). Reality tv. CQ Researcher, 20, 677-700.

Tyrell, Mark, and Roger Elliot. "Major Depression Facts."

Depression. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Nov. 2012. <http://www.clinical-

depression.co.uk/dlp/depression-information/major-depression-facts/>.

Vanderbilt, Tom. "The call-of the future: today we worry about the social effects of

the Internet. A century ago, it was the telephone that threatened to reinvent

society." The Wilson Quarterly 36.2 (2012): 52+. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In

Context. Web. 28 Oct. 2012.

Velasquez, Manuel, Claire Andre, Thomas Shanks, and Michael J.

Meyer. "The Common Good." The Common Good. Santa Clara University, 1992.

Web. 04 Nov. 2012.

<http://www.scu.edu/ethics/practicing/decision/commongood.html>.

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