Dear [candidate's name]
We regret to inform you that your job application was unsuccessful.
We have just cause to believe that you are a morally depraved social predator without conscience - prone to planned, purposeful and emotionless bouts of violence.
Please try again when you have a Facebook profile.
Sincerely,
Management
The notion illustrated above is just ludicrous, right? Well (amazingly), while slightly exaggerated, it may not actually be all that far-fetched in today's digitally-charged society.
Yes - sad but true - these days anyone between the ages of 12 and say, 45, who doesn't have a Facebook profile, raises eyebrows. And while it may not be explicitly deemed tantamount to utter social ineptitude, it does tend to connote a certain degree of suspicion. And, evidently, a similar sentiment has reared its head in the workplace.
According to Forbes.com, modern-day employers are increasingly inclined to question the kosher-ness of job applicants - particularly those of the younger variety - who are not on Facebook.
Numerous reports have raised issues around employers scouting the social network when faced with having to make a decision as to whether or not to hire a potential employee. Whether you agree or beg to differ with the stance that Facebook is, even to a slight extent, indicative of one's true self - the fact of the matter is that it is used as a gauge. Probably in more instances, more often - and being afforded more credence than we realise.
Sheep in wolves' clothing
But is it really fair to label those who choose Facebook abstinence as a way of life - for any one of a number of perfectly valid reasons (like the human right to privacy) - social lepers? Recent media reports have pointed to a parallel between the lack of what boils down to an online “look at me, like me” page and psychopathy.
It's bizarre. Apologies upfront for offense taken by any of my “friends”, but personally I think it's apt to be the other way around. I mean, I have viewed a fair share profiles that just smack of psycho - among my Facebook friends alone.
I have viewed a fair share profiles that just smack of psycho - among my Facebook friends alone.
Bonnie Tubbs, journalist, ITWeb
Taking the slant to the extreme, Germany's version of the Daily Mirror, Der Tagesspiegel, presents an inference leaning towards pathological mental disorders - based on the fact that neither recently accused Denver cinema shooter James Holmes (24), nor 2011 mass murder accused Norwegian, Anders Behring (33), has a Facebook profile. Come again?
Fair enough, depending on the digital generation you belong to, the lack of a Facebook profile may strike Facebook sheep as somewhat odd - depressing even - but then there are those who take it a little too seriously to lay claim to their own personal sanity.
And, given the sheer scope of social media today, it could almost justifiably be construed as peculiar if someone doesn't have a footprint at all. I guess these are the people social media junkies would refer to as the unfortunates - the un-Googleable.
Social networking - particularly the world's largest social network - has become so pervasive, so routinely used, that life without it has become almost inconceivable to online society. One in three of the two billion people online in the world are on Facebook. As at the end of June, there were 955 million monthly active users recorded - that's nearly three times the population of the US.
Who's the psycho now?
That being said, I personally admire people who are able to avoid being sucked into the mass recruitment platform (at the risk of acquiring pariah status), because despite my initial resistance, I wasn't able to. I am now officially an online product - easily accessible to anyone - the curious acquaintance, the ex or enemy with a vendetta who may be looking for ammo, and even as a sitting duck for individuals prone to stalking.
I am a self-professed sheep, and as I write, I am realising the mental health factor may be somewhat amiss in my own decision to open myself up online as I have.
When all's said and done, it must be noted that certain traits associated with Facebooking - such as narcissism, voyeurism (on a social level), “image making” and even agoraphobia - are some of the very traits that define psychopaths.
So you have to ask yourself: “Who is really the psycho here?” Is it the narcissistic, voyeuristic, ego junkie who thrives on virtual affirmation - or the unrevealing, self-contained individual who is comfortable with being themselves, living and interacting solely in the real world?
* The following YouTube videos are amusing depictions parodying the concept of fitting in with the Facebook crowd or being branded a freak of cyber nature:
The Man Without a Facebook
Can I be your friend?
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