IM310: Social Media Blog Post — Norm Breaching Experiment

Ever wondered what happens if you suddenly start sharing every tiny detail of your life on Facebook? Well, curiosity got the better of me, and I decided to find out. For the last day, I transformed into “The Oversharer.” I took the task of being an “Oversharer” from the experiment list, and adjusted it slightly to get a bigger audience pool rather than just from my mom or dad. The results? More surprising and revealing than I expected!

Here’s What I Did:

Instead of my usual one-post-a-day or one-post-a-week habit, I cranked things up — big time. I shared everything: what I had for breakfast, the song stuck in my head, even how I felt about the weather every couple of hours. Think of it as a live diary, open for everyone on my friend list to see, comment on, and like (or not).

I wanted to understand how my friends would react. Would they engage more because I was sharing more? Would they get annoyed and tell me to take it down a notch? I also kept an eye on the likes and comments and checked if people were whispering about my oversharing spree in DMs.

The Reaction:

The start of the day was fun. Friends engaged, laughed, and played along. My post about playing in a golf tournament got 30 comments of “good lucks,” and “have fun.” I posted about how sick I was of the weather, all the rain and wind, and got lots of “me too” responses or “where’s spring/summer.” Later on in the day, the novelty was wearing off — for them and for me. Comments started to dip, and a few likes still trickled in, but the ‘haha’ reactions were definitely up.

By the end of the day, a couple of friends had messaged me privately, half-jokingly asking if everything was okay or if I had been hacked. My posts began to feel like that one joke at the party that got told too many times. Not so funny anymore.

According to Nancy Baym’s insights on social norms in digital spaces, communities establish their own rules for what’s okay to share and how often. This experiment was a real-life test in crossing those lines. What became clear is that there’s a fine balance on social media between sharing and oversharing. Our digital communities expect this balance. When it’s disrupted, it doesn’t just change how others view us, it can change how we view ourselves.

I also realized how platform features influence our perceptions. Facebook’s timeline and notifications mean that every post potentially interrupts someone else’s digital routine. When you post too much, you’re not just filling up your own timeline — you’re filling up everyone else’s.

Discussion:

Honestly, it was exhausting. Not just creating all those posts, but also the emotional rollercoaster of watching reactions roll in (or not). I felt exposed and a bit vulnerable, sharing so much that I typically keep private or at least filter through a bit more discretion.

This little adventure into the world of oversharing showed me that while social media can be a fantastic tool for connecting, it also demands a certain level of self-awareness and respect for communal norms. It’s about finding that sweet spot between sharing enough to stay connected, but not so much that friends start tuning you out — or worse, worry about you. In the grand scheme of things, oversharing on Facebook reminded me that sometimes, less really is more.