A new study found that individuals who are involved in social media, games, texts, mobile phones, etc. are more likely to experience depression. The previous study found a 70% increase in self-reported depressive symptoms among the group using social media.
When people look online and see they’re excluded from an activity, it can affect thoughts and feelings, and can affect them physically. A 2018 British study tied social media use to decreased, disrupted, and delayed sleep, which is associated with depression, memory loss, and poor academic performance.
The negative aspects of social media However, multiple studies have found a strong link between heavy social media and an increased risk for depression, anxiety, loneliness, self-harm, and even suicidal thoughts. Social media may promote negative experiences such as: Inadequacy about your life or appearance.
Results:I Individuals with increased levels of social media usage were shown to have a positive correlation with depression symptoms, meaning as social media use increased, depression symptoms also increased. Conclusions:This study showed that social media use has the potential to affect individuals’ mental health.
Researchers believe that since social media competes for your attention with the promise of continuous new content, heavy social media users become less able to ignore distraction in general, which leads to poorer cognitive performance and shrinks parts of the brain associated with maintaining concentration.
How does technology affect mental health?
Social media and mobile devices may lead to psychological and physical issues, such as eyestrain and difficulty focusing on important tasks. They may also contribute to more serious health conditions, such as depression. The overuse of technology may have a more significant impact on developing children and teenagers.
- Depression and Anxiety. Do you spend several hours per day browsing through social media?
- Cyberbullying. Image Credit: HighwayStarz/Depositphotos.
- FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)
- Unrealistic Expectations.
- Negative Body Image.
- Unhealthy Sleep Patterns.
- General Addiction.
The more time spent on social media can lead to cyberbullying, social anxiety, depression, and exposure to content that is not age appropriate. Social Media is addicting. When you’re playing a game or accomplishing a task, you seek to do it as well as you can.
Some experts see the rise in depression as evidence that the connections social media users form electronically are less emotionally satisfying, leaving them feeling socially isolated.
Fifty-one percent of 45-54 year-olds, 49% of 18-24 year-olds, and 35% of people 55 and older report mental health challenges as a result of social media use.
FACTOR2: INCREASING DEPRESSING AND ANXIETY:- It has been found that increasing use of social media also leads to depression, anxiety, and stress in adolescents . A number of studies have found a correlation between heavy use of FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM and emotional distress.
“However, Social media has also led to negative changes in human behaviour. It has made them more self-obsessed and narcissistic. It has made them more lazy and violent, portraying a behaviour influenced by low self-esteem, depression, anxiety, mental health issues and trust issues.”
How the internet affects children’s mental health?
Research has indicated that internet addiction, particularly among younger demographics such as teenagers, is becoming a widespread issue. It has been linked to depression, low self-esteem, and loneliness – symptoms that often lead to diagnosable mental illnesses and worsening issues that were already present.
How does technology affect teenage mental health positively?
On the positive side, the researchers found evidence that digital technology use may be helpful to adolescents experiencing depression and anxiety. More time spent texting was associated with fewer same-day symptoms of depression and anxiety.
Research participants who used social media excessively were found to have higher levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), a biological marker of chronic inflammation that predicts serious illnesses, such as diabetes, certain cancers and cardiovascular disease.
A 2018 study suggests that social media use could result in a fear of missing out (FOMO). FOMO could in turn lead you to compare your experiences with others, sometimes creating a sense of inadequacy. This inadequacy may turn into social anxiety symptoms if you feel like you don’t “fit in” in certain social situations.
Studies have shown that increased use of social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Tiktok is leading to depression, anxiety, and loneliness. The COVID-19 pandemic has not only pushed more people to the platforms but has also caused people to spend unusual amounts of time cruising their feeds.
Although there are important benefits, social media can also provide platforms for bullying and exclusion, unrealistic expectations about body image and sources of popularity, normalization of risk-taking behaviors, and can be detrimental to mental health.
Studies have shown that people who spend a lot of time on social media are at least two times more likely to feel socially isolated. Social media use displaces more authentic social experiences because the more time a person spends online, the less time there is for real-world interactions.
Studies have reported that people who excessively use the Internet, spend less time interacting face to face, which in turn results in depression and loneliness [25]. Similarly, people who experience high levels of loneliness use the Internet for emotional support [26].
Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and more are giving people a chance to connect with each other across distances. In other words, the whole world is at our fingertips all thanks to social media. The youth is especially one of the most dominant users of social media.
Scientists used to think dopamine was a pleasure chemical in the brain, but now we know what it actually creates is want. Dopamine causes us to seek, desire, and search. Dopamine is stimulated by unpredictability, by small bits of information, and by reward cues—pretty much the exact conditions of social media.
How media influence your development as a person?
In the individual effect, media information about new norms may persuade individuals to accept them. In the social effect, the information creates common knowledge of a norm and enhances social coordination as individuals more readily accept the information if they believe others have also accepted it.
The time our kids spend online has a direct effect on their mental health. Too much time on social media can lead to bullying, depression, and anxiety. Spending more than four hours a day online significantly increases a child’s risk of becoming hyperactive and inattentive, and decreases feelings of self-worth.
How does media affect our day to day life?
They Determine Our Place in the World The media greatly influences society. They inform people about what is happening. It permeates people’s lives by creating their own criteria and opinions. In this way the media moves the masses, creating different social movements.