A Facebook dislike button may be coming soon. Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly considering adding a button to the popular social network so users can express “dislike” for a post. Zuckerberg did note that it is unlikely the feature will actually be a thumbs down icon with the word dislike beneath it.
Mark Zuckerberg said, “We need to figure out the right way to do it so the button ends up being a force for good, not a force for bad,” referencing the ongoing requests for a Facebook dislike button.
When a user publishes a post announcing bad news, users have said that hitting the “like” button just does not feel like the proper way to express sympathy.
The Facebook creator and his team are reportedly searching for a more tactful way to express support for posts that tells the world a pet has passed away or the individual is going into the hospital for a procedure. The extensive sharing of private information on a public forum, or over-sharing personal details, has become commonplace on Facebook.
Images of a user actually sitting in the hospital bed before going under the knife, real-time domestic squabbles, and telling your Facebook friends (and all their friends) that you are sad, pop up on the social network’s “wall” routinely throughout the day. Although Facebook has reportedly become less popular with teenagers, behavior which some feel is reminiscent of middle school girls still exists on Facebook – it is just now often posted by adult women.
The type of posts often shared on Facebook appear to be a focus for Mark Zuckerberg and his team as they discuss how to initiate a dislike button of some sort. Zuckerberg said that users could click a Facebook dislike button to express “negative sentiment” in the “wrong way” that could be viewed as being “cruel or mean.”
Since users are free to say something negative on Facebook, within the bounds of the law, of course, some are confused by all the concern about the name and usage of a dislike button by the social network owners. Facebook posts where women publicly lambast the fathers of their children, or users bash co-workers, bosses, or a child’s teacher is chastised, are posted frequently on Facebook — and likely generate the same “negative sentiment” Zuckerberg fears will occur is a thumbs dumb dislike button would.
The vast number of both teenagers and adults who rush to Facebook to share any mildly important life moment has some mental health experts concerned that the social network is overshadowing reality. A lack of self-esteem may be the reason so many feel the need to post their every emotion and daily life detail to Facebook. Making a relationship “Facebook official” is viewed as an important romantic milestone by some. Posting long loving messages to a spouse, who may not even be a Facebook user, to acknowledge an anniversary or birthday, instead of merely turning your head and telling the loved one how you feel, has also been cited as an example of a possible addiction to the social network and a deep desire for attention.
A Facebook dislike button has been discussed by Mark Zuckerberg and his team since 2010. Users who have grown tired of waiting have opted to use a “dislike sticker” to express their thoughts on a specific Facebook posts. It has been rumored that an “overshare” sticker may be in the works. The Facebook overshare sticker could be posted by users who feel a reminder to not air your dirty laundry in public is necessary.
What do you think about oversharing on Facebook and the possible addition of some type of Facebook dislike button?
[Image via: Kabir News ]