The students sat there for three minutes, with the Facebook group permitted to spend three minutes surfing only their page and its associated tabs. When the three minutes was up, everyone was given a questionnaire on self-esteem. The control and mirror groups saw no rise in self-esteem; the Facebook group, however, did.

The students who had edited their profiles during the three minutes felt the highest level of self-esteem. “Unlike a mirror, which reminds us of who we really are and may have a negative effect on self-esteem if that image does not match with our ideal, Facebook can show a positive version of ourselves,” Hancock told Cornell Chronicle. “We’re not saying that it’s a deceptive version of self, but it’s a positive one.”