Power of Selfies: More Than Just a Trend!

“We found that people have a natural intuition about which perspective to take to capture what they want out of the photo,” said lead author Zachary Niese, a Ph.D. graduate of The Ohio State University, now a postdoctoral scholar at the University of Tübingen in Germany.

“These photos with you in it can document the bigger meaning of a moment,” she said. “It doesn’t have to be vanity.”

Psychology of Selfies

Previous research suggested that capturing the physical experience of an event or its broader meaning maybe two important motivations for taking personal photos.

For example, someone at the beach with a friend may take a photo of the ocean to capture the physical experience of a beautiful and relaxing day. Or they could take a photo with themselves in it to capture the bigger meaning of spending time with a friend.

In a series of six studies involving 2,113 participants, the researchers explored the impact of perspective in personal photography.

In one online study, participants read a scenario in which they might want to take a photo, such as spending the day at a beach with a close friend. They were asked to rate how important the experience itself would be for them, and how important the bigger meaning would be.

Results showed that the higher participants rated the meaning of the event to them, the more likely they said they would take a photo with themselves in it.

Finding the Perfect Shot

Another study demonstrated the truth of people’s intuitions about whether each perspective better captures the experience or meaning of events. This study asked people to examine photos they posted to their Instagram accounts.

Participants opened their most recent post featuring their photo and were asked: “What does this photo make you think about more?” with the response options being “The physical experience of the moment” or “The bigger meaning of the moment.”

Results showed that if the photo featured the participant in the shot, they were more likely to say the photo made them think of the bigger meaning of the moment, while photos featuring how the scene looked from their own visual perspective made them think of the physical experience.

But sometimes people may not take the photo that captures their goal – and the result is that they don’t like the photo as much.

Capturing the Physical and Emotional Experience of an Event

In another experiment, the researchers again asked participants to open their most recent Instagram post featuring one of their photos. They were asked whether they were trying to capture the bigger meaning or the physical experience of the moment.

Participants then rated how they felt about the photo on a scale of 1 (not at all positive) to 5 (extremely positive).

“We found that people didn’t like their photo as much if there was a mismatch between the photo perspective and their goal in taking the photo,” Libby said.

For example, if they said their goal was to capture the meaning of the moment, they liked the photo more if it was taken in the third person, with themselves in the image.

Overall, the results suggest that people have an intuition about what perspective they should use in photos to fulfill what they want the photo to do, Niese said.

“I hope this study increases people’s knowledge about how photo perspective affects how they react to photos,” he said. “That way they can make sure they consciously choose the perspective that will meet their goal.”

The results also suggest people may be posting photos on Instagram and elsewhere for more than just their audience, Niese said.

“This work suggests people also have very personal motives for taking photos. Even on social media, it appears that people are curating images for themselves to look back on to capture the experience or the meaning of the event,” he said.

Source: Eurekalert