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Do you ever get tired of political posts on Facebook?

You knowthat friend with a strong opinion about anything and everything political.

At a Glance

Feeling sick of all the hostility, name-calling, and bullying is normal.

woman’s hands using a smartphone

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If you find yourself in this situation, you are not alone.

In fact, unfriending someone for their political views is fairly common.

This fact should not be surprising.

These insults are often made through the use of blogs, social media, and more.

Consequently, it is not surprising that people have become much freer with their use of words.

This has become painfully apparent in recent years as religious and political disagreements become more and more volatile.

While many people have embraced the freedom that social media provides, just as many are simply fed up.

Meanwhile, Trump labeled Clinton a “nasty woman” and called her “Crooked Hillary.”

The results indicated that the tone across all parties became increasingly negative.

Moreover, social media empowers people to say things they would never say to someone’s face.

Much of this concerns the fact that they can hide behind a computer screen.

In many cases, they also took it a step further.

It was cyberbullying at its worst.

Research suggests that self-censorship has increased in recent years.

Many worry that sharing unpopular opinions will alienate others and lead to social isolation.

This often causes them to think that they are being judged.

They also assume that people are displeased with them or disagree with them.

As a result, there is a lot of hostility andfrustrationbased solely on assumptions.

Resist the urge to react instead of respond.

Slow down and take a minute.

Scroll past the post and read something else.

The goal is to avoid posting something equally inflammatory and then later regretting it.

So put on the brakes.

Just be sure to ask in a way that doesn’t put your friend on the defensive.

You don’t want them to feel like they have to justify their feelings to you.

Instead, keep the focus on the issues.

Additionally, it might be best to have this key in of conversation offline and in person.

A lot of interpretation is lost online.

If you do not understand why a friend feels so strongly, ask them.

Find out how this impacts their life.

Sometimes it helps to view the world through a different lens.

An even better option is to ignore them altogether.

Remember, you cannot control what your Facebook friend posts online.

But you’re able to control how you respond.

Do not allow another person’s blanket bullying statements to impact you and your day.

One option is to “hide” or snooze your friend.

With this option, you remain friends but you no longer see their posts in your newsfeed.

Of course, the other option is to unfriend the person and even block them from friending you again.

It is very hard to salvage a friendship when you land unfriended or blocked them on Facebook.

So when you see something that is unsettling, take a step back and look at the big picture.

Is your friend going through a tough time right now?

Could these political posts have something to do with a bigger issue in their life?

make a run at beempatheticand remember why you are friends with this person in the first place.

Is this person atoxic friendthat you should avoid, or is theirfriendship worth an effort?

you’re gonna wanna protect yourself from the negative feelings these posts create in you.

Or maybe the answer is to avoid engaging in any political discussions online.

Check Your Answers

Remember, there are a lot of unsubstantiated articles and information online.

You don’t want to contribute to the plethora of misinformation andconspiracy theoriesthat are floating around on Facebook.

Ensure that your post is factual, accurate, and not offensive.

The last thing you want to do is to become just like your obnoxiously political friend.

After all, you should probably protect your online reputation.

Rainie L, Smith A.Social networking sites and politics.

The moral argument theory of opinion dynamics.Front Psychol.

2018;42(3):446-457. doi:10.1007/s11031-018-9671-9