This Is The Real Reason You’re So Obsessed With Taking Selfies, According To Science

Contrary to popular belief, selfies have always been a thing. Your family probably has plenty of old black and white photos your grandparents took of themselves. But it wasn't until we actually coined the word "selfie" that they became such a huge phenomenon.  

From Facebook, to Twitter, to Instagram one of the main reasons to participate in social media is to share pictures, especially pictures of yourself. Selfies allow you to capture your favorite look and control the way you want to present to the world around you. 

Older generations may hate it, but selfies are definitely here to stay. We're not even sure the world could exist without selfies at this point. 

With the growing popularity, it was only a matter of time before someone found a way to study the science behind selfies. Luckily, the good people at University at Buffalo - SUNY got there first to grace us with a ridiculously informational study. 

The results aren't necessarily flattering for obsessive selfie-takers (i.e. all of us), but they are definitely interesting. 

Ultimately, the study found a strong connection between people who base their self-worth on the opinions of other people are more likely to post selfies. 

Another recent study attempted to create a link between frequent selfies and narcissistic personality traits. Noting that those who rated higher on the narcissism scale also seemed to be more likely to post selfies than those who rated lower on the same scale. 

As "selfie culture" continues to flourish, studies based on them will continue to be published. Some will probably find links between negative personal attributes and selfies and other will say the exact opposite. 

All of us can be a little self obsessed at times but that doesn't make us raging narcissists. Nor does it have to mean that every selfie you take is a cry for validation. 

We all love it when science offers legitimate explanations for the weird things that we do. We're not sure whether selfies make us awful, self-centered narcissists or not, but we know that we're not going to stop taking them, either way.