What do you mean, Facebook friends aren’t real?
By Nicole Kobie in Editorial
Posted in Uncategorized on
Have more than 150 friends on Facebook? Well, they’re all not really your friends, according to an Oxford researcher.
According to the research, we’re only really capable of managing real, meaningful connections with 150 or so people. So whether you’ve got 151 or 999 names on your list, you’ve pretty well got the same amount of “real” friends. (If you’ve got fewer than 150, you’re clearly a loser. Sorry, not my opinion, it’s science, all right?)
While my initial response was an to think “well, that’s obvious, isn’t it?”, I think the researcher is actually missing the point. I’ve got more than 150 people on Facebook, and some of them definitely aren’t really my friends. I’m aware of this; I don’t think it makes me the most popular girl in school. In fact, I’d be surprised to think that 150 really were my “real” friends.
No, the rest are people I used to know, but don’t really speak to that much, or contacts made at events or while travelling — people I’d like to keep in touch with, but without putting any actually effort in. Friends take effort; casual acquaintances, not so much. Using Facebook to keep track of these people is sort of what the site’s about, expanding your networking options without having to keep a rolodex or whatever those flippy business card holders are called.
I wonder what would happen if they studied mobile phone contacts or email address books. A quick glance through my handset’s phone book shows I have about 170 or so phone details (not counting the random numbers that get saved every time I forget to lock my keys — apparently KJDe;ueasdfj is reachable at 09238513182, if you were wondering.)
I doubt I speak to the vast majority of my 170 or so contacts; in fact, I doubt many are even still valid. I don’t even know who some of them are, to be honest, which kind of frightens me.
My email account is much the same. I simply don’t delete contacts — sure, that guy dumped me years ago, but what if I need to email his sister three years from now? Who knows.
While it might mean I need to learn to use my delete key a bit more, it doesn’t mean I think every email, phone, Twitter or Facebook contact I’ve ever added to my many lists is my best friend forever. It’s just someone I met once.
Rated: 80% (2 votes)
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