"Like" as Innovation and the Principle of Imitation

This series presents a digest of the book SNS Transition History: The Future of a Society Connected by "Likes" (East Shinsho), published to commemorate its release.

Part 1: Characteristics of the Three Major SNS Platforms and Reasons for Their Popularity

Part 2: The Era of Searching for Information on SNS: The Shift from "Googling" to "Tagging"

This time, we will examine the meaning of "likes" on social media, which have had a major impact on our values, and consider the effect of "imitation" as the most important concept in thinking about information behavior on social media.

Please note that the next installment will cover the latter part of this article, so we encourage you to read both together.

The "Like" Button as Innovation

I believe one of the greatest innovations of the 2000s was the "Like!" Yes, Facebook's thumbs-up icon—a reaction and reward for shared content.

While the original meaning of "innovation" is "technological advancement," here I define it as "value creation that brings irreversible change to society and people's lives." The subject is not technology or economic impact, but fundamentally us. Irreversible means a change that makes it difficult to imagine returning to a situation as if it never existed. It also implies the creation of positive value. We simply cannot return to a world without "Like!"

Some point to the issue of validation craving surrounding "likes." They ask: Isn't acting solely for "likes" putting the cart before the horse? Isn't it encouraging young people to do extreme things? These points have merit, and I don't think there are no concerns worth considering.

However, it's undeniable that "likes" have encouraged many users to share more, made people's support visible, and generated a wealth of positive, supportive feedback that likely wouldn't have existed otherwise.

It's not something you'd go out of your way to say "thank you" or "that's amazing" about—but you still want to react. That's what the "Like" button evaluates. This is the value of communication.

The "Like" button became so widespread and commonplace because it's the most effortless reward/approval mechanism—just a tap on the screen—and it adds value to the action. It creates a tangible sense of being acknowledged, and receiving one feels good.

It's also an easy and enjoyable form of interaction. There's no need for the weight of words like "That photo is great!" in a comment. Since we see many posts on our social media timelines, reducing the "load" of communication allows for more interactions. This is the ultimate mechanism for getting users hooked on social media.

Society's Demand for Visualization

The emergence of "likes" also had a historical inevitability. The defining feature of modern information technology is its tendency to "make things visible."
　
In the world of SNS, things previously unseen—like the number and nature of a person's supporters (followers), the influence derived from them, the popularity and spread of shared or posted content, and the evaluation of that person or product—have become visible. People now rely on this visibility.

Even if "Like!" hadn't specifically emerged to measure popularity or evaluation, some functionally equivalent feature would likely have been created and popularized. Therefore, I believe there's no point in singling out "Like!" as the enemy.

Incidentally, there's an interesting anecdote surrounding Facebook's "Like" button. It involves investor Peter Thiel, who provided early funding for Facebook, and his relationship with Professor René Girard, under whom he studied.
　    
After studying philosophy at Stanford University, Thiel earned his Juris Doctor degree at Stanford Law School. He began his career at a law firm, then moved into finance and startup founding, becoming a founding member of the global online payment system "PayPal." After the business sale, he became a prominent venture capitalist, investing in Facebook during its earliest stages. He also features prominently in the film "The Social Network" (released in Japan in 2011).

Girard was a French literary critic who served as a professor of comparative literature at Stanford and Duke Universities. He developed the Mimetic Theory, establishing an anthropological and sociological framework based on the idea that imitation shapes fundamental aspects of social communication and our desires and violence.

The two are said to have connected during their time at Stanford. Thiel recalls, "Girard encouraged me to make an early and fruitful investment in Facebook."
　
Thiel felt that social media directly validated Professor Girard's theory. He stated, "Facebook generates word-of-mouth, and it itself expanded its user base through word-of-mouth, so it doubly evokes Girard's theory."

This reveals a deep connection between mimesis (imitation) and Facebook's core feature, the "Like" button.

According to Girard, people choose objects of desire through "contagious imitation." What we want to do, what we want to have, what we want to become... the power of imitation strongly influences the emergence of such desires. And for us living in the age of social media, the "Like" function serves to guide this process.

The Deep Relationship Between Simulacra and "Likes"

One of the keywords for information behavior that I have been advocating for the past few years is "simulacrum."

The original meaning of the word is similar to "simulation," and in everyday language, it can be paraphrased as "imitation," "copy," or "counterfeit."

The term is known to have been popularized by Jean Baudrillard, a thinker and sociologist who analyzed the nature of high-consumption societies, and is written as "Simulacre" in French.

The author defines this term as "a visual image (photograph, video, or other symbol) that everyone admires and begins to imitate, without knowing who started it or where the original came from."
 

Simulacrum
A visual image that everyone starts imitating, though no one knows who started it.

For example, on Instagram, there are many photos that are somewhat similar. This is particularly noticeable with travel photos, where there are many similar photos with the same hashtag. These are examples of simulacra.

Recently, the hashtag #置き画くら部 (okigakurabu), which involves placing clothes on the floor and photographing them from directly above, has become popular. While showing oneself wearing the clothes might make one feel embarrassed, thinking "I'm not a model," the "okigaku" (placing and photographing) method does not show one's face or style, lowering the barrier to posting. It combines the characteristics of low barriers to sharing and ease of imitation, which contribute to its spread.

Photography techniques like "flat lay" are used not only for clothes but also for food, and they are spreading as simulacra. Lev Manovich, the media researcher quoted in Chapter 3 of the book, argues that these "flat lay" photos are a form that symbolizes the essence of Instagram.

This simulacrum phenomenon occurs when everyone's desires intertwine, seeking things that are easy to see and easy to "like." When a simulacrum stimulates the image that users long for, that simulacrum is further reinforced, attracting even more users.

To put it more precisely, it is the users' needs and desire for approval, which extend beyond "I want to have this kind of experience" to "I want to be the kind of person who has this kind of experience," that form the core of the simulacrum.

*To be continued next time.