Remember back in the day when you first signed up on Facebook? It was so exciting to reconnect with people you haven’t been in contact with since high school and see what they’ve been up to all these years. But then Facebook seemed to begin turning into something else. It’s been caught in multiple scandals over the years, pushing fake news and breaching its users’ privacy and trust, to name a couple. Things have gotten so bad recently a whole #quitfacebook movement has begun. And guess what, people who have taken a break from the site say they are actually happier.
Is it time to take a break from Facebook?
Researchers from Stanford and New York University conducted a study on taking a break from Facebook would impact them. They recruited about 2,500 people who were averaging nearly an hour each day on Facebook to take part in the study. Participants were asked to deactivate their Facebook account for 1 month. The results were not surprising. The majority of people who walked away from Facebook for a month said they found themselves being happier. Instead of wasting time on social media, they actually met up with friends and family more than before. Dinners, happy hours and going to movies replaced the time they would have been spending online. Many said during their break from Facebook they also spent less time on other social networks. They also said they spent less time consuming the news overall. I guess that shows just how dependent people are on social media for getting news, which is a little scary if you think about it. It’s probably not a great idea to rely on Facebook and Twitter to stay up on important current events in the world. So, what do you think … are you ready for a break? Keep reading to learn how to deactivate your Facebook account. Don’t worry, you can revive it when you’re ready.
Deactivate your account
If you don’t have the willpower to just stay away from Facebook forever, deactivate your account and take a break. This is different from deleting your account. Deactivation essentially puts your account into suspended animation. Facebook states, “Deactivating your account will disable your profile and remove your name and photo from most things you’ve shared on Facebook. Some information may still be visible to others, such as your name in their friend list and messages you sent.”
How to deactivate your Facebook account:
Go to the Facebook account menu, choose “Settings,” and select “edit” next to “Manage Account.” This opens up an option to deactivate your account. You will need to re-enter your password and give Facebook your reason for leaving. Options include “This is temporary. I’ll be back.” and “I have a privacy concern.” Keep in mind that deactivating your account also means you can no longer publish to any Pages you might manage. Be sure there’s an alternative administrator for Pages that need updates in your absence. You can reactivate your Facebook profile at any time, so you can return to the site in full when (or if) you decide to end your self-imposed exile. Bonus: Tap or click below to listen to this quick 1-minute story about the Facebook exodus
Facebook users are extremely unhappy. In this episode of Consumer Tech Update, Kim looks at recent poll numbers from Facebook users that reflect their increasing dissatisfaction with the social networking site. With Facebook, there seems to be more going on than people realize.
