Has social media made us more of attention-seekers?

                It’s an apparent observation that social media has changed society. It has made sharing information, ideas, pictures, and more, incredibly quick, and incredibly easy. It has, without a doubt, changed the way we act. If I want to share a thought with many people I’m going to update my Facebook status or tweet about the idea, rather than going around telling everybody I know. It’s just easier. However, social media seems to have done more than just change the way we act, but on a deeper level, it seems to have changed the way we are. It’s not uncommon for people to focus on gaining attention on social media to a ridiculous degree.

                There is no shortage of moments I've heard things along the lines of “hold on, I need a good picture for my profile.” The words “but first, let me take a selfie,” have become a running joke around the internet. People vie for attention like never before prior to the advent of social media. There’s a certain rush we get when we post something witty and see the likes roll in. Has there been a time you’ve gone out of your way to post something because the likes you could get? Have you ever gotten caught up in a race to be the first to post the wittiest quip or most relevant thought to some breaking news? (Which is kind of silly, really, considering most sites will organize posts in reverse chronological order, so being first is really last.) Perhaps something’s happened to you, good or bad, and one of the first things you thought to do was post it and wait for the reaction. I, for one, have done all of these.

                The most extreme example I've witnessed of this sort of behavior, was when someone I know was proposed to in front of friends and family. She was stunned, left nearly speechless by the proposal of the young man, and words couldn't describe how happy she was in that special moment. What shocked me the most, however, was not that he proposed, (I saw it coming,) but just how quickly she jumped on Facebook to share it. She was sitting with the man she loved most, along with her closest friends and family, and one of the first things out of her mouth was “Oh, now I can change my relationship status on Facebook to ‘engaged’!” Which she did, and proceeded to sit there and enjoy the likes and comments and messages of congratulations pour in, fairly removed from the rest of the conversation and celebration right in front of her.

                This example is pretty extreme, but it’s always the one that comes to my mind when I think “How social media has changed society.” This brings us back to “does social media change who we are?” It seems to be so with examples like the one above. In the end, though, I want to challenge the idea. I want to say, no, social media hasn't changed who we are. I used to be all over social media, and over the past year or so have completely removed myself from it, but I don’t find myself any different. I don’t crave and seek attention any less than I used to when I was using social media. I just do it a bit differently now. I don’t think things like Facebook or Twitter have made us more self-centered or attention seeking. It’s simply given us an organized central place to do it in. If the woman I wrote about earlier didn't have social media, don't you think she would have been just as excited to share it? I’d bet one of her first thoughts would still have been about telling everyone and showing off the ring, she just wouldn't have been able to do so right then and there. I think, with social media, people want to gain attention from their piers just as much as they did without it. What do you think? Does social media increase attention-seeking behavior among us? Or is it simply a convenient place to organize and quantify it?