2023-04-28 11:08:28
EA lot has been thought about and written about the selfie mania. This urge of people to photograph themselves – in all (im)possible situations and poses, to which digital photography with smartphones no longer sets any limits. An exaggerated ego, narcissistic love for oneself or even silly boasting have already been discussed as inner motivation. What else could be behind it, if a field of flowers, a summit cross or a sunset is not simply chosen as a motif, but always with the person who is actually there at the moment?
Scientists from the University of Tübingen, the Canadian University of Waterloo and the Ohio State University are now reporting their findings on the choice of the egocentric perspective in photos in the journal “Social Psychological and Personality Sciences”. They wanted to find out when people choose a photo from the first perspective – i.e. exactly as they see it themselves, and when they choose the third perspective, where they are in the picture themselves. The researchers conducted six studies involving a total of 2,113 participants.
When people aim to capture meaning, i.e. the moment triggered strong emotions in them or they had a meaningful experience, they chose the selfie perspective. If they were more interested in capturing the physical experience, i.e. more of a “Nice here, impressive!”, they chose the perspective without themselves in the picture. Unsurprisingly, they also liked the photos better in surveys where the intended goal was actually achieved.
Tulip Field: Better with us…
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Image: EPA
… or without?
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Image: dpa
This finding fits what the critic Susan Sontag had already suggested in 1977: She explained that people photographed almost compulsively in order to transform the experience itself into a way of seeing.
According to the new study results, the selfies are not about showing off, but rather about capturing the meaning of moments. And, according to the scientists, putting yourself in the limelight in a photo also helps people to connect with past experiences and to build and consolidate a self-narrative.
The scientists emphasize that there is no right or wrong perspective for the photos. However, people should be aware of the observed effect of the respective perspective in order to be able to better achieve the respective goal of a recording – i.e. to capture either the physical experience or the deeper meaning of a moment. “When people are clear about what they are aiming for with their photo, they could better capture memories that they want to revisit later.”
#research #effect #selfimage #memory