How to Beat 'Facebook Envy'

A recent Stanford study has brought the phrase "Facebook envy" into the vernacular, notes Meghan Daum. Essentially, people tend to think everyone else is way happier than themselves, a notion particularly reinforced by the site. Spend enough time cruising through all those oh-so-joyful photos and announcements posted by others, and it's bound to make your own life feel a little grim.

But before getting too depressed, check out your own Facebook persona, Daum suggests in the Los Angeles Times. "Is it an accurate portrayal of the bleak loserdom that's unavoidable in every life? Or do all the photos make you look thin and are all the tidbits only scintillating? If you didn't know better, would you be writhing in envy at yourself?" she asks. "If the answer is yes, you've got nothing to worry about." (More Facebook stories.)