The Risk Moms Take When Posting on Facebook

A recent study has linked how mothers use Facebook to depressive symptoms, especially for new moms who use the social media site.

Conducted by The Ohio State University, the study included over 125 working women from the Buckeye State who were first-time parents in a dual-income relationship. Researchers measured the frequency of the mothers’ Facebook posts, photo uploads, and their feelings based on societal pressure to be the perfect mom from the third-trimester of pregnancy through nine months after giving birth.

“If a mother is posting on Facebook to get affirmation that she’s doing a good job and doesn’t get all the ‘likes’ and positive comments she expects, that could be a problem,” said lead author Sarah Schoppe-Sullivan.

According to the study, 98% of mothers uploaded photos of their children to Facebook. The typical mother uploaded the first photos of their infant within a week after the birth. In addition, 80% of mothers changed their profile picture to one including their child.

“What these mothers are saying is that my child is central to my identity, at least right now,” Schoppe-Sullivan said. “That’s really telling. These are not stay-at-home moms in our study. They have jobs outside the home that can also provide validation, which makes our results even more interesting. They have other successes to point to for validation.”

Overall, Schoppe-Sullivan concluded that all mothers can learn from this study.

“It’s great to share stories and pictures of your baby,” she said, “but relying on Facebook to feel good about your parenting may be risky.”