Finally even US President Barack Obama cracked. While images of him posing for the notorious self-portrait (more gloriously known as a ‘Selfie’) with the British and Danish Prime Mininsters, David Cameron and Helle Thorning-Schmidt, went viral on Wednesday, the selfie attained all new glory.
Earlier named word of the year by Oxford Dictionaries, the slang word seems to have become more than just a legit English word; it’s become a statement for many, and in Obama’s case, a political spectacle (given that the three leaders chose to click the grinning selfie at the memorial organised for the late Nelson Mandela).
Even as people react to the bad timing of the selfie and jokes about funeral selfies do the rounds (the number of selfies taken at funerals and posted online is not even funny), there’s a more inherent issue at large -- the selfie itself. What may have started as a convenient way of clicking one’s own picture without feeling embarrassed about asking someone else to do so, the selfie has become a narcissistic tool, compounded by social networking sites that fan self appraisal through likes and comments. In fact, the life of a profile picture and/or a selfie is directly proportional to the positive reactions it garners, and in a growing number of cases, the perception of self worth.
Says Divya Sritvastav, “It makes me depressed to see no likes or a lesser number of likes. My eyes and stomach hurt when I get upset. Recently I’ve realised that selfies can fetch more likes because you have an advantage of highlighting just the thing you want -- the big flower on your dress, the nailpaint, your newly done hair -- which won’t be possible otherwise as no one knows you better than yourself.”
People active on social networking websites seem to be caught up in a vicious cycle of taking pictures, uploading them on websites and waiting for an overwhelming response in the form of likes and comments which boost one to take and post more of such snaps. While everyone has a justified reason to click a selfie, researches have begun to establish a relation between growing narcissism and selfies. Everyone has narcissistic traits but the important thing is to understand that there exists a fine line between the real and the image.
Surprisingly, the influence of the selfie isn’t just on people with low self-worth, but even those who hold themselves in a healthy high regard. Says Megha Jain, a software employee, “It doesn’t particularly bother me what other people think of me. But I do like to post pictures that I think will get me a lot of likes and when I don’t get that response, I change my picture immediately. Mostly, these are selfies that I’ve clicked all over the place -- in a lift, at a fancy washroom at a hotel, at a park, etc., and if I come across a cool looking spot for a picture, I definitely click a selfie.”
For many, it’s technology that’s converted them to selfie-takers; with front cameras it’s only become easier. For Gangeya, another IT professional, taking selfies is a way to kill time. “I prefer selfies either because it’s awkward to ask someone else to take a picture of me or there is no one around to help. I upload new pictures every second day and about 10 times during weekends out of boredom.”
Many of us are also guilty of taking a selfie to quickly check how we look in the absence of the mirror. Master’s student Shivaji finds taking a self portrait quite a handy tool to see how his new haircut or pair of spectacles would look before he makes a public appearance. “I click selfies just to appease my soul as a photographer and my looks by judging it. Usually I change my picture on Facebook twice a week. It delights me if my well-clicked selfies are appreciated. If condoned, I experiment with different angles.”
As narcissistic as it may appear, the selfie, Dr Montiero says, has more to it than that. Explains the Director of the Hyderabad Academy of Psychology, “I believe that we are now in a time where the youth are much more self focused than before. Instead of narcissistic traits, I see entitlement as being a major problem among them. Selfies are a direct expression of a young person’s need to form an identity. If a person’s personality, upbringing, temperament, family circumstances, and life experiences have already caused them to develop narcissistic traits then yes, selfies will be an expression of the same. These pictures are usually an expression of oneself mixed with a desire to be validated by others. Instead of contributing to an increase in narcissism, I think it could certainly exacerbate existing pathological traits, if they were already well formed.”
Which brings us to children being influenced by the trend as well. With pre-teens and teenagers the most impressionable, it becomes important for subtle re-iteration of self worth.
Shares Pooja, a high school student, “I get excited to see likes on my recently uploaded pictures. I feel thankful that at least eight out of 300 friends on Facebook, appreciate my picture. Less likes makes me conscious, I get an urge to delete my picture but I have friends who compliment me for my pictures which keeps me going.”
It becomes important that parents and teachers remind the youngsters that selfies at the end of the day, aren’t true reflections of oneself.
“Right from their childhood, children should be taught to be balanced in their view of themselves by giving them sufficient praise and criticism, and training them to deal with criticism. It’s necessary to have a healthy sense of self which helps in keeping pathological narcissistic traits at bay,” Dr Monteiro advises.