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Category Archives: Articles

Has TikTok altered our online self-perception?

No other social media platform is as focused on the human body in motion as is TikTok. Unlike “traditional” platforms such as Instagram where the visual emphasis was primarily put on portrait-like static images, TikTok was conceptualised as a short-form video app for full-body display

What makes online content go viral?

Virality: coveted, elusive, fleeting. The ultimate goal for all social media marketers, attained by a chosen few, and seldomly according to plan. We all create content with the hope that at least some of it will stick in the collective cyber-memory for longer than a

Five psychological principles to rev up your social media marketing

“Know your audience” is a tag line for all social media marketers. Brands often rely on various analytical tools to answer questions about their social media demographics, to predict their followers’ preferences and behaviour and create content that would best resonate with them. Going back

The merits and pitfalls of a smartphone-free vacation

It’s summer: time to ditch our phones, tablets and laptops and hit the beach. What better period to indulge in digital detox and decompress than August, right? Sadly, this is not an easy thing to do. Simply leaving our devices behind for a week or

TikTok is killing your brain, one short-form video at a time

Ever heard of the term “TikTok brain”? It is fittingly coined to hint at what the short video platform does to human cognition and overall mental functioning. Although we still lack comprehensive longitudinal research into the phenomenon, there is piling evidence for the detrimental effects

Digital childhood: kids and social media

Recently Apple’s CEO Tim Cook said that he wouldn’t want his children to use social media, joining with this statement a growing group of digitally disillusioned tech executives. Meanwhile, social network giants like Facebook seem to make every effort to keep kids firmly glued to

Why Facebook’s News Feed changes won’t increase our well-being

When last week Mark Zuckerberg announced another major overhaul to Facebook’s algorithm, he explained it with his company’s aim to ensure people’s connectedness and “well-being” when using the platform. As per research, he put it, people feel happier and less lonely when actively engaging with

Narcissists and social media: a (self-)love story

We all have those annoying Facebook friends who simply can’t stop posting selfies. As soon as they cross the threshold of a location, they create a check-in status, and never fail to inform us if they feel “excited” or “relaxed” there. Eventually, we block such