The Self and the Selfie: The Rise of Psychological Dysfunction Through Selfie-Taking Behavior Among Indian Adolescents Post-Pandemic

Selfitis is considered as an obsessive-compulsive desire to take photos of oneself and post them on social media either to enhance self-esteem or gain attention. Selfies refer to self-portraits taken by one using a digital camera or a smartphone (APA, January 2015; Social News Daily; Adobe Chronicle). Selfie-taking is increasingly popular among young adults without knowing that selfies reflect their owners’ personality traits and how people judge others’ personality. Thus, the current study aims to identify the different dimensions of self that get engaged and affected by mere selfie-taking behaviour. The research adopted a qualitative design and used a purposive sampling method to survey 1080 individuals aged 18-25 years, who were aware of and took selfies, to identify the various dimensions of self-associated with selfie taking. The thematic analysis of the responses indicated 11 dimensions of the individual self that get engaged and affected namely Self-Esteem, Happiness, Intimacy, Obsessive-Compulsive Behaviour, Narcissism, Sense of Independence, Self-Concept, Neuroticism, Attention Seeking, and Socio-Cultural Factors. These results help structuralise and comprehend the impact of selfie taking behaviour which help in self-assessment by excessive users and aid planning intervention.