OpinionsEditorials

Facebook study is lazy research

Ever lay in bed and think about life? That’s because you’re probably homosexual. At least, that’s what a new study conducted at the University of Cambridge is saying about Facebook users who like that page.

The study, which was released to the public earlier in March through Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, aims to predict traits such as intelligence, religious views, political affiliations, sexual orientation and emotional stability by scrutinizing a user’s Facebook likes.

But rather than giving some sort of epiphany to users that were not aware of their own religious beliefs already, the study just seems to prompt users to carefully adjust their privacy settings.

The predictions hardly seem like predictions at all, with results revealing both obvious connections and questionable associations.

One example from the study links high intelligence to liking the page “curly fries.” While researchers acknowledged that there is no obvious connection, they spent more time highlighting how accurate their predictions were from the not-random sample of 58,466 volunteers.

But even these “accurate predictions” were hardly surprising. After all, it makes sense that the study would be able to correctly predict the gender of users liking “Proud to be a Mom.”

The study should stand as a red flag about online posting as opposed to being looked at as a personality test.

Companies, including Facebook, have began to use the snippets of information they find through user profiles in order to market their products.

Highlighting potentially private data from users that may have not explicitly posted something allows these companies to target consumers.

Facebook has continued to breach the trust of its users, refining its Terms of Service and changing its privacy settings without much warning.

Still, Facebook users are 43 percent more trusting compared to other Internet users, a study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project in 2011 found.

Users should use this study as a turning point to how they post online.

As Mark Zuckerberg said in 2010 regarding dismissive attitudes toward privacy, “They ‘trust me’…Dumb f***s.”

Other Stories

Unsigned editorials represent the opinion of the Campus Times Editorial Board.

Previous article
Gay Straight Alliance opens resource center
Next article
Original pieces highlight weeklong Pianofest

Latest Stories

Related articles

Columns

Commentary: Food used in fashion is not so sweet

For their Fall 2026 collection, Italian-brand Moschino sent a purse that looks like a bag of churros down the runway. These types of ideas are not new to the brand, however, this highlights a larger trend that is taking over the fashion world: the luxury of food. 
Arts, Etc.

Commentary: Music is A-Changing

At 7:48 p.m. on Nov. 4, before polls closed, New York City mayor candidate Zohran Mamdani released a video on social media platforms like Instagram and X titled, “New York is A-Changing,” which featured the song “The Times They Are A-Changing” by music icon Bob Dylan.
Columns

Commentary: Gatekeeping in fashion does more for community than advertised

Fashion trends come and go, either reflective of a decade gone past or using more modern day concepts to create something entirely new.
News

Professors shares AI effects on social media

Tim Conley, University of Southern California professor and president and producer of 67 Entertainment, speaks at the Baha’i Pathways to Peace lecture series in the Campus Center Ballroom on Monday.