One Button to Rule Them All

As you're reading this, millions of people will check their Instagram. And will keep checking, and checking, and checking as we desperately crave its visuals and social rewards. However, that might all just change. Last November, Instagram sent out a tweet saying it will hide the number of likes for each post.

Tweet by Instagram. Source

Of course, the social media world panicked and was quickly divided into whether or not this was a smart move for the company and its users. Large social media platforms such as Instagram and Facebook incorporate likes in the first place because it is a way for their users to express their enjoyment or support of certain content. On the other hand, I tend to agree that the "like" system can be detrimental to mental health, especially to the younger generation. It feels good because it is a quick form of self-validation but at the same time, the human brain is made to make comparisons, making Instagram a commonplace fueled by unhealthy competition. As cognitive neurologist, Ofir Turel says, "Imagine if every time you go to a bank, you get your balance, but you also see the balance of other people. It will cause most people to feel annoyed or dissatisfied with what they have." Now Instagram is giving its users a break from their fixation on likes.

Furthermore, in Adrienne Massanari's 2017 research article on Reddit, she argues that the upvote system propagates toxic cultures. In August 2014, a large collection of leaked nude photos of celebrities were leaked online and eventually spread to Reddit, with many of those images swarming /r/all (the home page) for weeks due to their upvote system. Massanari states that new users would see /r/all during this leak and reasonably assume that it represents the dominant culture of Reddit, in this case, sharing nude photos of women. The problem now becomes circular as those who do not want to participate in these views may choose to not participate in Reddit all together, further increasing the likelihood that such perspectives do not make the front page. As of now, Reddit has become more aware of its content shown and even allowed communities to prevent themselves from appearing on their home page.

So the question now is, are numerical indicators of popularity good for the Internet? As long as you're aware of its effects, there is no issue with feeling good about getting likes on your posts online. Better yet, have the option to turn them off rather than disabling them permanently, therefore not affecting businesses/creators that rely on it for exposure. After all, no one button should have all that power.