Social Media Is Where Good News Gets Posted
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iStock/Thinkstock(MADISON, Wis.) — It’s a sign of the times: when people have good news that’s happened to themselves or others, they’ll more often share it on social media sites such as Facebook or Twitter to reach the biggest possible audience in the least amount of time.
Researchers at the University of Wisconsin, Madison arrived at that finding after having 300 undergrads keep a journal of their emotions and the form of media they used to convey these feelings to others.
Far and away, when there was positive news to report, the students generally posted messages on social media.
Interestingly, however, the participants went “old school” when they had to pass along bad news.
The preferred ways of spreading less joyous information was via the phone or even telling people face-to-face.
Study author Catalina Toma put it succinctly, “You often hear people say when the phone rings, its bad news,” Toma said. “Our data supports that.”
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