Who are your real friends on Facebook – Biz Point

It is known that the “friends” of Facebook in many cases may be “known” rather than real people nearby. However some users believe that those who give “likes” can be their friends but how many really are part of your life?

According to a publication of The Capiital, Robin Dunbar professor of psychology at the University of Oxford, has produced a study on how the extensive use of social networks and instant messaging is not directly proportional to the real social network of the person. “There’s a cognitive limitation on the size of social networks that even the advantages of online communication media are unable to overcome,” he said after analyzing the conclusions of the study based on a sample of 117 individuals aged between 18 and 63, whose average number of friends on Facebook was 150.

And, traditionally, the time spent by a person on social networks is associated with a great social life reality. However, the study warns that it is not. “There’s a cognitive limitation on the size of social networks that even the advantages of online communication media are unable to overcome,” says the study. That is, the social area of ​​the brain has a limit when it comes to process the number of relationships (between 100 and 200 people).

When each of the study participants were asked how many friends Facebook were authentic, respondents answered honestly and average barely reached 27.6%. When analyzing the number of people you count on a hard time, they recognized that only resort to four people all the “friends” with Facebook.

“Thanks to the Internet, the last decade has witnessed a dramatic revolution in our social world,” says Robin Dunbar. In the same way that the Internet has allowed people to communicate with each other otherwise, irrespective of their geographical location, it has also generated an intense debate on the positive or negative impact of this new relationship. Thus, the study points out that while on the one hand are the “cyberoptimistas” on the other are the “cyberpesimistas”.

Still, judging by the results, it is clear that the “face to face interaction” is essential to build a true friendship. The teacher ensures that relationships on social networks are also “subject to the same cognitive demands”. Therefore, without a personal encounter there a true friend.