On Social Media, Admitting You Are Wrong Leads To Better Online Relationships: Study

According to the lead author of the study, willingness to engage in wrongness admission is positively correlated with agreeableness, openness to experience, honesty, humility, & emotional intelligence

A new study has found that social media relationships can be like face-to-face relationships. For instance, intellectually humble behaviour, like admitting mistakes, can help create a better impression online. (Representational Image)

New Delhi: People can easily express their opinions on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, which has both pros and cons. Using social media to tell the world what one feels may encourage open dialogue and at the same time, trigger fights because others may not agree with what a particular person has written on the platform. A new study has found that social media relationships can be like face-to-face relationships. For instance, intellectually humble behaviour, like admitting mistakes, can help create a better impression online. 

The study, led by researchers at University of Houston in Texas, was recently published in the journal Social Psychology. 

According to Adam Fetterman, the lead author of the study, willingness to engage in wrongness admission is positively correlated with agreeableness, openness to experience, honesty, humility, and emotional intelligence. The user can admit they are wrong as there are hundreds of passive witnesses on social media. The online social network (OSN) user's best course of action is to admit they are wrong when they make a mistake, Fetterman noted in the study.

How Was The Study Conducted?

Four experiments were conducted as part of the study. Participants were asked to read a staged argument between two users on a Facebook wall. The two users argued about a made-up food additive, and brought up common themes of health food.

According to the study, the final post by Participant A contained the manipulation. There were two conditions — admission and refusal. In the admission condition, Participant A posted that he or she is wrong. "... I guess I am wrong and you are right on this. Thanks for posting those links and thanks for the conversation!" Participant A wrote. In the refusal condition, Participant A said he or she is right and the other person is wrong. "... I still think I am right and you are wrong. Thanks for posting those links and thanks for the conversation!" Participant A said. 

Findings Of The Study

In a statement issued by University of Houston, Fetterman said those who witnessed an OSN user engage in wrongness admission rated that user as higher in communion and competence traits compared to a user not engaging in wrongness admission. The researchers found that those in the admission condition were more likely to indicate interest in interacting with the admitting user compared to those in the non-admission conditions. 

When people create accounts on social media, they only post textual and pictorial information. Gathering information about them based on this information can be tricky. Fetterman said that people tend to form the most positive impressions for those on social media who display communal, open, and humble online behaviours. He explained that wrongness admission serves as a cue of intellectual humility, communion, and competence. 

The author added that although the admitted is telling onlookers that they have been incompetent in this instance, it suggests that they are willing to work together and that they are competent enough to recognise faulty knowledge and change it.

Fetterman concluded that admitting on social media that one is wrong appears to lead to better formation outcomes than not admitting.