Bloggers = Opposite of Loners?
The term blogger, like it or not, often comes along with the connotation that you opt for interaction with your computer over other human beings.
A new Australian study featured in CyberPsychology & Behaviour magazine revealed that bloggers do not feel isolated after all. In fact, they feel more socially connected than non-bloggers.
The psychological traits of 134 people who were new to MySpace were analyzed. A follow-up survey, conducted two months later, found that those who had blogged were happier with the number of friends they had – both online and face-to-face – than non-bloggers. These bloggers also say they are more likely to reach out to those friends for help.
Read more here.
Dictionary.com defines a “Friend” as:
1. a person attached to another by feelings of affection or personal regard.
2. a person who gives assistance; patron;
3. a person who is on good terms with another; a person who is not hostile
As my volume of blogging has increased, I have personally felt more connected than ever before. At the very least, my network, which was once quite localized, has expanded to international proportions.
Would be interesting to see the survey done with self-hosted bloggers instead of MySpace bloggers. While the results may be similar, I think there will be some differences.
I think myspace is a little unique compared to those people blogging on wordpress or any other server hosted options. I also bet a lot of bloggers could benefit from having a friend function to give their blog more visibility.
the1brit
http://www.comtempozine.com