We've probably all done it.
It seems that, sometimes, everyone on your social media feeds are having a great time, living an amazing life.
And while this may cause jealousy for some, it is important to realise that a lot of what is put on social media is probably a huge exaggeration. Most of us know its all a big lie, but we ourselves get tempted to do the same.
It's safe to say that all of us at one point or another lie, or at least exaggerate online, from overly enthusiastic statuses to extra-filtered Instagram posts.
But a new study has found that it is really not a good idea.
The study focused on people between the ages of 18 and 55 who were asked to take part in two tests to find the difference between one's true self and their Facebook self.
The first test measured the participants’ humility, emotionality, extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness, while the second test measured these same qualities but in terms of their 'Facebook self'.
The study found that the larger the gap between people's real and online lives meant that they were actually less socially connected and more stressed.
The researchers said that it is "possible that by presenting oneself authentically on Facebook, less emotional labour is required, therefore resulting in less stress."
This basically means that lying and attempting to look a certain way on Facebook can actually bring on a lot of stress and anxiety compared to when people choose to be themselves.
So while lying on Facebook might seem like a good idea at the time, the study found that we are actually more likely to be socially connected to people when we're more honest on our profiles.
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