Is Facebook an Accurate Representation of Personality?

The goal of this study was to examine whether there are correlations between online presentation of oneself on Face book (through profile pictures, number of Facebook friends, relationship status, and how often friends are mentioned) and four personality traits (extroversion, social anxiety, self-esteem, and attachment style). Participants completed an online survey to report Facebook information and measure personality traits. Findings show that (a) the more friends one has, the more likely one is to mention them on his or her profile; (b) people with an avoidant attachment style are less likely to have a boyfriend/girlfriend; (c) neither extroversion nor social anxiety is related to number of friends; and (d) number of pictures taken alone versus with others is not related to self-esteem