Facebook use, less socialising could make people sadder

The more the people use Facebook, the more they will believe that others are much happier, suggests study.

LONDON: While logging into Facebook account many times a day in office or at home may have turned an irresistible habit for a lot of people, particularly the young, a study has said being glued to it could actually be making people sadder.

According to the study by Utah Valley University, the more the people use the hugely popular social networking website, the more they will believe that others are much happier, the Daily Mail reported.

The study found the carefully-chosen pictures of smiling, cheerful faces which Facebook users tend to plaster over their pages cumulatively convey a debilitating message to others.

It says those who had used Facebook for longer were also 'significantly' likely to agree with the statement that 'life is unfair'.

Researchers thus suggest that a quick way to cheer oneself up could be deleting one's account from the site.

Conversely, the study - published in the journal Cyberpsychology, Behaviour and Social Networking - found that people who spent more time actually socialising with friends in real life were less likely to feel they had been handed life's short straw.