PULSE POINTS
JACOB KEPLER PHOTOGRAPHY
Study Suggests Selfies are
Good for Your Well-Being
S
elfies may have been getting a bad rap lately, with
critics arguing that the habit of taking selfies helps
feed a culture for narcissism. But one study
entitled “Promoting Positive Affect Through
Smartphone Photography,” which was conducted
by computer scientists from the University of California Irvine’s
(UCI) Donald Bren School of Information & Computer
Sciences, reported that regularly snapping selfies with your
smartphone and sharing photos with your friends can help
make you a happier person.
According to lead author Yu Chen, a postdoctoral scholar in
UCI’s Department of Informatics, the goal of the study is to help
researchers understand the effects of photo-taking on well-being
in three areas: self-perception, in which people manipulated
positive facial expressions; self-efficacy, in which they did things
to make themselves happy; and pro-social, in which people did
14
PULSE
■
November 2016
things to make others happy.
Researchers collected nearly 2,900 mood measurements during
the four-week study and found that subjects in all three groups
experienced increased positive moods. Some participants in the
selfie group reported becoming more confident while those taking
photos of objects that made them happy became more reflective
and appreciative. Participants who took photos to make others
happy became calmer and said the connection to their friends and
family helped relieve stress.
Although most spas promote a “no phone” policy, there may
still be a creative way to welcome technology into your spa. Have
you considered designating a “phone-friendly” area, such as inside
the waiting lobby to encourage guests to take selfies of their spa
experience and share online? Have you thought about ways to
incorporate photography as a way to help increase a sense of
happiness and well-being among your guests?