Why Some Users Flee Facebook
Of 410 people who responded to an online questionnaire, 46 reported that they had deleted their Facebook account.
More than 90 percent said they were happy with their decision, and most stayed away.
Others were not able to completely cut themselves off, but nonetheless reported taking breaks from using the social networking site.
More than one-quarter of respondents (110) reported deactivating their account which hides everything they have done on Facebook but retains the data and allows them to reactivate at any time.
Two-thirds of deactivators reported being happy with their decision -- one-third subsequently returned to Facebook.
"A few respondents reported using other creative means to limit their use of the site," Baumer added.
There were also 75 people in the survey who reported never having an account.
"Some did not want to be on display or live 'life in a global aquarium'. We also observed a sense of rebelliousness and pride among those who resisted Facebook," the authors wrote.
The study also provides evidence that Facebook users who deactivate their account are more likely to know someone else who has also deactivated.
Baumer plans to further explore this potential network effect.
The study was presented at the Association for Computing Machinery's conference on human factors in computing systems in Paris, France recently.
Also Read: Users To Be Blamed For Their Less Diverse News Feed: Facebook
