How Many of Your Facebook Friends Are Your Real Friends? Not Many. New research shows that, out of your hundreds of Facebook friends, there are only a handful you can count on.

By Steve Dent

This story originally appeared on Engadget

Even if you have thousands of Facebook friends, you can probably only count on a handful in a pinch, according to a new study. The author, anthropologist Robin Dunbar, should know. He's the guy who came up with Dunbar's number, which shows that in the real world, people can only maintain about 150 stable relationships. For his latest research, Dunbar analyzed a UK study of 3,375 Facebook users between the ages of 18 and 65. On average, folks had 150 followers but said that they could only count on 4.1 of them during an "emotional crisis," and only 13.6 ever express sympathy.

Those numbers line up very closely with Dunbar's previous offline studies. "The sizes of the two inner friendship circles did not differ from those previously identified in offline samples," he said. Having a lot more than 150 followers doesn't change things much, either. "Heavy users of online social media do not have larger offline social networks than casual users, even though more of these may appear online for heavy users."

Social networks typically encourage promiscuous 'friending' of individuals who often have very tenuous links to you.

Unsurprisingly, you're likely to have a larger online social network if you're young, but older people tend to have more friends in real life. "A likely explanation for this difference probably lies in the fact that [social networks] typically encourage promiscuous 'friending' of individuals who often have very tenuous links [to you]," said Dunbar.

The results confirm the obvious: Each of us has limited time and emotional capacity for social interaction, whether we're online or not. However, social networks do offer one distinct advantage -- they allow busy folks to touch base with people and keep friendships on life support. "However, that alone may not be sufficient to prevent friendships eventually dying naturally if they are not occasionally reinforced by face-to-face interaction," says Dunbar.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Business Ideas

70 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2025

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2025.

Buying / Investing in Business

Former Zillow Execs Target $1.3T Market

Co-ownership is creating big opportunities for entrepreneurs.

Business News

'They're the Backbone:' Walgreens Says Using Robots to Fill Prescriptions Helped It Save $500 Million. Here's How.

Walgreens says its robot-assisted centers fill 16 million prescriptions a month.

Business News

These 5 States Have the Most Affordable Housing, According to a New Report

U.S. News & World Report's latest rankings found the top five states with the most housing affordability.

Business News

Elizabeth Holmes' Partner Raises Millions for New Blood Test Diagnostics Startup: 'We've Learned From Her Company's Mistakes'

The startup insists it isn't Theranos 2.0 and that Holmes, who's serving a prison sentence after being convicted of fraud, "has no role."

Business Solutions

Save $90 on the Microsoft Office Apps Your Business Needs

From emails to spreadsheets, this version has what every leader needs.