Tech researchers say this is partially the fault of a phenomenon called "context collapse," a sociological concept that describes what happens when many social groups exist in one space.Here's how context collapse plays out online. When you have Facebook friends numbering in the thousands, your audience becomes a little difficult to speak to all at once.In an article for sapiens.org, Sophia Goodman described it as “trying to comfortably chat with your mother, bar buddy, work colleague, and ex-boyfriend at the same time.”In a place where parents, colleagues, bosses and friends all congregate, you can find it difficult to be yourself. Or, rather, to decide which self to be.

and your career

Understanding the sociology of social media means you can be more mindful about how you use it. Hopefully, your online life will be more fulfilling because of it. Or, maybe you'll decide to give it up all together.If you do stick around, don’t expect to ever find that “authentic” online version of yourself.“There really isn’t such a thing,” Marwick said. “It’s really always a performance."