How Does Social Media Change People?

This article from Marginal REVOLUTION discusses a new academic study by Ertugrul Uysal, Sascha Alavi, and Valéry Bezençon that explores how social media use may change people's identities, specifically shifting individual values toward achievement and conformity. The study uses a difference-in-differences analysis across countries and experimental manipulation of Facebook use to establish a causal link. It finds that social media increases achievement and conformity orientation through an increased need for approval, particularly among those who self-ruminate. The author expresses skepticism about the reliability of such research but praises the novel angle beyond typical beneficial/harmful effects studies.