In his new book, CONTAGIOUS, Jonah Berger talks about the importance of self-sharing. He poses the question as to why people talk so much about their own attitudes and experiences. He responds as follows: "It's more than just vanity; we're actually wired to find it pleasurable. Harvard neuroscientists Jason Mitchell and Diana Tamar found that disclosing information about the self is intrinsically rewarding."
Young children are completely self-centric as they explore and learn about their world. With good mentoring they learn to be alert and caring about others. We all know people who are selfish and people who are selfless. The latter seem to be valued more in our culture.
Perhaps the tweeting generation know something important. Self-sharing contributes to their happiness. [Russell]