A central feature of the online social networking system, Facebook, is the connection to
and links among friends. The sum of the number of one’s friends is a feature displayed
on users’ profiles as a vestige of the friend connections a user has accrued. In contrast
to offline social networks, individuals in online network systems frequently accrue
friends numbering several hundred. The uncertain meaning of friend status in these
systems raises questions about whether and how sociometric popularity conveys attractiveness
in non-traditional, non-linear ways. An experiment examined the relationship
between the number of friends a Facebook profile featured and observers’ ratings of
attractiveness and extraversion. A curvilinear effect of sociometric popularity and social
attractiveness emerged, as did a quartic relationship between friend count and perceived
extraversion. These results suggest that an overabundance of friend connections raises
doubts about Facebook users’ popularity and desirability.