W1S1: Homework - 'The Daily Futures' Research

Task:

I was paired up with Joyce Liew to be the first in the class to prepare and present a piece for 'Daily Futures'.

Joyce really wanted to do our 'Daily Futures' project on the new Facebook 'Reactions' (the new options that extend the 'Like' button) so we agreed to go and do some research about it individually and then meet up on Wednesday morning to prepare our script and powerpoint presentation.


I looked at these websites for information and opinions about the new 'Reactions':

http://newsroom.fb.com/news/2016/02/reactions-now-available-globally/

http://mashable.com/2015/10/08/facebook-reactions-how-to/#w8BmBB.R8qqf

https://medium.com/facebook-design/reactions-not-everything-in-life-is-likable-5c403de72a3f#.yzmzr8uxr

http://qz.com/627612/facebooks-new-reactions-emoji-expose-the-lies-we-tell-about-ourselves-online/

http://variety.com/2016/digital/news/facebook-reactions-emotion-buttons-1201713676/

http://www.z-comm.com/blog/facebook-reactions-changes-for-brands-marketers

http://www.socialmediatoday.com/social-networks/how-facebooks-reactions-will-change-game-overview-marketers


I also found this good short clip that shows how the 'Reactions' work:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_eyIuL9oUw8


I started drafting out a script using material I compiled and edited from the websites I visited:


"Facebook is a social media platform that uses interaction design to allow users to share all kinds of things with the people they care about. In 2009, Facebook introduced the ‘Like’ button that allowed people to give feedback to their friends’ posts. It became simple and effortless to scroll down the News Feed and tap the little thumb to acknowledge what your friend posted. Sometimes you don’t know what to say and you just want to let someone know you heard them. That’s what the Like button does so well. It is simple and frictionless.

But, not everything in life is Likable.

Facebook’s new ‘Reactions’ feature was rolled out a few weeks ago. It is an extension of the Like button, to give users more ways to share their reaction to a post quickly and easily. Facebook’s 1.6 billion worldwide users can now select from emojis signalling ‘Love,’ ‘Haha,’ ‘Wow,’ ‘Sad,’ and ‘Angry.’

For more than a year Facebook has been conducting global research including focus groups and surveys to determine what types of reactions people would want to use most. They also looked at how people are comment on posts, and the top stickers and emoticons people use, to help them determine which reactions to offer.

On the surface, these new emoticons would seem to offer Facebook users a chance to expand their emotional vocabulary—as well as potentially offer valuable data to businesses down the line. But in fact the carefully selected emojis reveal the inherent restrictiveness of Facebook. Human expression is limitless and Facebook is inhibiting users from showing complex emotions.

You might be wondering, “Why isn't dislike one of the reactions?”. People have been asking for a ‘dislike button’ pretty much since the beginning of Facebook, so it may be surprising to some that the oft-requested dislike isn't one of the reactions making an appearance. But Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has said many times that he feels ‘dislike’ could convey too much negativity.

The logic of not introducing a dislike option seems pretty clear – the potential for negative interactions, and thus, negative user experience, is too high, and Facebook wants each user to stay on platform as long as possible, to interact more with Facebook content, so adding in a ‘dislike’ option seems somewhat counter-intuitive to that goal.

Just imagine the hell that would break loose if Mark Zuckerberg included in his range of responses emoticons that reflect what Facebook users really think about their friends’ posts. Frustration and jealousy are common reactions. So are feelings of inferiority, boredom, loneliness and contempt.

In private, many of us judge our Facebook friends for coming across as phonies, exhibitionists, self-promoters, and attention junkies. Consider the way you might feel if you noticed that your friend had posted a new, flattering selfie on Facebook. From experience, you might suspect that your friend is feeling low and could use a blast of support from flattering comments. But the you may also feel embarrassed about your friend’s obvious vulnerability, as well as self-conscious about having done the same thing yourself. Nonetheless, the cursor comes down, Like.

The six newly approved emotions available on Facebook are not very complex. The company has simply formalised the range of emotions most of us feel are safe and appropriate to express on a social network.

That being said, the new ‘Reactions’ will hopefully increase emotional engagement on Facebook. Not only do Reactions provide users with the option to do more than simply ‘Like’ a piece of content; they also encourage users to pause and consider their true feelings towards it. In a world where Facebook ‘Likes’ are sometimes considered cheap vanity metrics, Reactions are a positive step toward more authentic engagement."