Famous for controversial statements is only a short-term halo
Every time a controversial and thị phi statement appears on social networks, millions of views, comments and shares often lead to prolonged debates. Many people choose shocking ways of speaking, creating contradictions to quickly attract attention and increase recognition.
Following this phenomenon, many young people believe that social networks are unintentionally creating an environment that makes negative content easier to spread.
Ms. Le Minh Anh (22 years old, Hanoi) believes that creating controversy can help a person become famous very quickly, but that attention rarely creates a long-lasting impression, making it difficult to be sustainable.
Maybe today people know you for a shocking statement, but a few days later there will be someone else who is more shocking. If you only rely on that, it is very difficult to gain long-term respect," said Ms. Le Minh Anh.
According to Ms. Minh Anh, even she herself is easily attracted by new and controversial statements. However, these contents only attract her attention for a moment, not enough to create love or leave a long-lasting mark on the spokesperson.
Meanwhile, Mr. Quang Huy (24 years old, Ho Chi Minh City) realized that many people are confusing being known by many people with being truly valuable.
Social networks make views increase very quickly, so many people think viral, being known quickly is successful. But in my opinion, fame because of controversy is completely different from being recognized thanks to ability," Mr. Quang Huy said.
Also according to Mr. Quang Huy, constantly making shocking statements can make young people lose their own image.
Many opinions also suggest that instead of creating controversy, young people can completely build an image with professional competence, creativity or positive content to create a long-lasting impression.
Views do not determine the value of a person.
According to psychologist Hoang Anh - Voice of Therapist Office - the psychology of "shocking to become famous" is not formed randomly but is the result of a combination of the need for recognition of individuals and the way social networks operate.
''In young people, the need to be recognized by others is often very strong, especially in the period when each person is still struggling to find their identity and position in society. When a content receives many views, likes and comments, the poster easily feels that they are being noticed and recognized more'', the psychologist said.
From a behavioral science perspective, psychologist Hoang Anh said that this can be explained by B.F. Skinner's principle of reinforcing behavior. When an action continuously brings "reward" of attention and interaction, people tend to repeat that action. If the content is more shocking and more attractive to viewers, some individuals will form the thought that if they want to become famous, they must create something truly different, even controversial.
What is worrying is that when attention becomes the main goal, some people may gradually equate the concept of "being known by many people" with "being valuable", or equate viral with success. At that time, they will constantly have to push the limit further to maintain attention," the psychologist said.
According to Ms. Hoang Anh, the consequences of this issue are not only in the fact that extremist statements appear more often, but also in the risk that young people gradually lose the ability to distinguish between personality and offensiveness, between humor and offense, between freedom of expression and responsibility to the community.
The important thing is not to criticize young people for wanting to be famous. The need to be recognized is a very natural need of humans. What needs to be done is to help young people who are still struggling in the journey of asserting their abilities to find healthier ways to mark their self-worth through intelligence, creativity and substantive contributions, instead of depending on the number of views or the level of controversy," the psychologist emphasized.
