[Health ★★★]
(P1) They might be trying to live up to societal expectations
(P2) Baby pictures clogging up your Facebook feed could signal a new mom on a risky search for approval, according to a study of 127 working moms from Ohio. The fact that 98% uploaded photos of their baby to Facebook wasn’t surprising. What interested researchers, however, was that those who posted photos and updates most often felt pressure to be a perfect mom, sought validation, and considered motherhood to be an important part of their identity, reports Mashable. A key indicator was using a baby photo as a profile picture—which almost 80% of study participants did. These women “felt validated when they got a lot of ‘likes’ and comments, but they were also more likely to feel bad and disappointed when the reaction wasn’t what they had hoped,” a researcher explains in a release.
(P3) Sounds pretty harmless, right? Well, those same women were also more likely to experience “elevated levels of depressive symptoms” like restless sleep and a low appetite nine months after giving birth, co-author Sarah Schoppe-Sullivan tells WOSU. That doesn’t mean new moms should steer clear of Facebook, which can help them find advice and support. But if a woman “doesn’t get all the ‘likes’ and positive comments she expects, that could be a problem. She may end up feeling worse,” Schoppe-Sullivan says. Because the study focused on highly educated, working women who were predominantly white and married, the results might not be universal. But Schoppe-Sullivan stresses one point: “It’s great to share stories and pictures of your baby, but relying on Facebook to feel good about your parenting may be risky.”
WORDS: 274
SOURCE: http://www.newser.com/story/225879/what-it-means-when-moms-go-baby-crazy-on-facebook.html
VOCABULARY: societal, clogging, validation, indicator, harmless, depressive, predominately
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
If you found the passage difficult to read or had problems understanding specific words or idiomatic expressions, please discuss them with your tutor. The following discussion questions should be answered in your own words and with your own arguments.
- Briefly, summarize the content of the article in your own words.
- Do you use Facebook? Why or why not?
- The results of the research say this problem may not be universal. Do you think it’s universal or not? Why?
- Do you think people use social media for attention? Why or why not?
READING COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS:
- How many women were a part of the research in Ohio?
- Women in this study did not feel pressure to be a faultless mom. (T or F)
- The study suggested that the new moms probably had a higher level of what symptom?
- In the study, if the women didn’t get lots of likes and comments, she still felt good about herself. (T or F)
EXPRESSIONS or PHRASES:
What do the following expressions or phrases mean?
- Live up to (P1)
- Steer clear (p3)
- End up (P3)
Image source: by “unknown” Facebook – Shutterstock https://www.shutterstock.com/search/mom+laptop?language=en&ref_site=photo&search_source=search_form&version=llv1&anyorall=all&use_local_boost=1&autocomplete_id=&show_color_wheel=1&orient=&commercial_ok=&search_cat=&searchtermx=&photographer_name=&people_gender=&people_age=&people_ethnicity=&people_number=&color=&page=1&inline=271296596&image_type=images&safe=true