Snapchat Makes Us Happier Than Facebook, Research Reveals

But there is one kind of interaction more rewarding than Snapchat

You may spend hours and hours on Facebook and only a few minutes a day on Snapchat - but apparently, Snapchat makes us far happier than Facebook does.

According to a study by the University of Michigan, using Snapchat 'actually predicts more social enjoyment and positive mood than Facebook and other social media'.

But there is still one type of interaction which the study found to be even more rewarding than Snapchat.

You guessed it - it's that old chestnut, face-to-face communication.

Old school.

Source: giphy

In what is one of the first published research findings examining Snapchat, the study took 154 college students who used smartphones, and measured their thoughts, feelings and behaviour moment-to-moment in their daily lives by texting them at random six times a day for two weeks, wih questions like 'how negative or positive do you feel right now?' and 'how did your most recent interaction occur?'

The researches found that Snapchat interactions were associated with more positive emotions than other types of social media - but Snapchat was viewed as less 'supportive' than other interactions including Twitter, texting and email.

'On the surface, many people view Snapchat as the "sexting app",' said Joseph Bayer, the study's lead author. 'But instead, we found that Snapchat is typically being used to communicate spontaneously with close friends in a new and often more enjoyable way.

'Since Facebook has become a space for sharing crafted big moments such as babies, graduations and birthdays, Snapchat seems to provide users with a distinct space for sharing the small moments.'

Does Snapchat make you happier than Facebook? Let us know @marieclaireuk