Social Currency - Blog 12

     Bailey Parnell tells us that high social media use has a direct connection to depression and anxiety among it's users. She tells us that the feelings of stress are exacerbated by social media use. There are four big concerns that come with social media. Those four are : 1) Highlight reel 2) Social Currency 3) F.O.M.O (fear of missing out) 4) Online harassment. Focusing on the connection between social currency and social media, we can see that users of social media have essentially utilized the likes, comments, and shares as a valuable pieces adding to how 'wealthy' they feel socially. Parnell describes this as the "economy of attention", where we (the posters) have become the items that others can show their value to. Social currency is the motivator to post on social media, and has become the reason our public identities are shaped the way they are.