Gen Z sadfishing trend on social media may be sign of serious psychological issues: experts

The latest social media trend, “sadfishing,” is igniting plenty of conversations as users become increasingly drawn to “attention seekers.”The habit of “sadfishing” is defined as “the tendency of social media users to publish exaggerations of their personality to generate sympathy,” according to a 2021 research paper published in the Journal of American College.The research found that many “sadfishers” display anxious attachment. It concluded that this “may not be triggered by an acute perceived lack of social support, but rather, may be more strongly related to the persistent trait of anxious attachment.”Don Grant, PhD, national adviser for Healthy Device Management of Newport Healthcare in Los Angeles, California, told Fox News Digital that the phenomenon is nothing new.The award-winning media psychologist, speaker and published researcher said the trend came to national attention with a campaign featuring Kendall Jenner in 2019, when she posted about her struggle with acne as part of her partnership with Proactiv.“This person is putting something, you know, that’s kind of vague or sounds, frankly, a little ominous or something sad,” he said about today’s “sadfishing.” Grant said that at the beginning and end of his presentations, he proposes questions.“My friends who are close to me know what’s going on with me.They know what my daily life is,” he said.“If you are putting anything on social media, what is your motivation for what you need or want people to know who are not in your close circle? What is your reason for posting? What’s your motivation for posting something for the whole world [to see]?”Grant said that for “sadfishers,” it is case-dependent and can be concerning.“If it’s chronic, then absolutely.

I couldn’t pretend to know or guess what it is for everybody,” he said. “But I would say it’s definitely a cry for something.” He said the manifestation could be a real diagnosis....