Final Discussion - Madison Clark

 The Dunbar Number has been a theory of interest within the class for quite some time. Embedded in this theory is the idea that we are only capable of maintaining 150 relationships with people. With such a large number of relationships, there are different levels of familiarity. Dunbar argues that we maintain 5 close friends, 15 good friends (including the 5 "close" relationships), 50 friends (including the other 15 relationships) and 150 acquaintances (including all other numbers). The science behind this grand total derives from the fact that historically speaking, the average group size has always been approximately 150 people. 

This number can be applied to social media nowadays with the amount of followers that many people, including myself, maintain on social media platforms. For instance, let's consider my Instagram account. I have over 1,100 followers, however, many of them are individuals that I haven't formed close relationships with. This causes me to be more aware and mindful of what I post, given that I don't have a real relationship with some of my followers. 

This is where more intimate apps, such as BeReal, come into play. With BeReal, many of my followers are individuals that I know to some extent, whether it is very well or only somewhat. I personally agree with the Dunbar number, in that we can truly only know 150 people to different extents. While many of us might be afraid to admit to it and claim that we have more friends than that, and our online social networks may portray otherwise, in a scientific lens, our brains can only handle so much information and maintain the capacity to truly "know" 150 people. With this theory, we are able to put into perspective our social interactions and networks and understand hierarchies.