Social Media and Mental Health (Teens)

Social Media:

  • Common Social Media Sites:

    • Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, Reddit, etc…

  • UK public health study survey of 1500 youth showed 90% used the Internet for social networking 

  • Has changed the way we communicate

  • Effect on mental health is controversial

  • Selena Gomez, one of the most followed person on IG, went to rehab to take a break 

  • Physical contact with others can be protective psychologically

Possible Positive Impact of Social Media

  • Easier to share information

  • Easier to learn or improve skills (eg. Languages, cooking tutorials, makeup tutorials, etc…)

  • Easier to make new friends and find support

  • Maintaining communication with family and friends

  • Can positively affect mental well-being if living farther away

  • Less intimidating form of social communication for people with social anxiety

  • Social connection regardless of physical attributes or disabilities

Possible Negative Impact of Social Media

  • Negative feelings, decreased satisfaction in life

  • Distraction from real life, illusion of social connection, decreased social skills

  • School avoidance and academic decline, less productivity, less down time

  • New Challenges: cyberbullying, sexting, catfishing, ghosting

  • Inadequate understanding of the intimate aspects of face-to-face communication - result of decreased exposure to real life conversations and physical expression (eg. handshake, smiling, frowns, etc…)

  • Unrealistic expectations of oneself when compared to often photo-shopped or Facetuned images (eg. IG)

Possible effect of Social Media on Major Depressive Disorder

  • Important to ask about social media (SM) use and frequency, sites visited 

  • Studies have found that excessive use of FB may lead to a decline in subjective well-being and happiness in youth, particularly depressed youth.

  • SM can be used as a distraction but can further fuel depression, “social comparison”, and a distorted view of reality or of oneself. Over ,time they may be likely to delete SM accounts

  • No conclusive evidence that SM causes depression; lesser use may be associated with a decline in depression as there is a decline in social withdrawal 

  • According to a study on teens, > 5 hours of daily use was more likely associated with unhappiness then < 1 hour of daily use.

  • Also the greater number of platforms used, the greater the risk for depression and anxiety

  • Ask teens about number of platforms and number of hours used /day, also inquire about their sense of safety using social media

Possible Effect of Social Media on Self Esteem

  • Validation by the number of likes or re-tweets could have a positive or negative effects

  • Low self-esteem may lead to more activity on SM such as FB and IG in hopes of seeking more validation

  • Depression or social anxiety may lead to less posting and more browsing, more FOMO

  • Self-esteem can be negatively affected by comparison to often altered pictures of others, or events they haven’t been invited to attend

Possible Effect of Social Media on Social Learning

  • UCLA study on the reward centres of teen brains showed increased
    activity when they received more likes for their posts

  • Encourages desire to addictively strive for more “likes”

  • May affect judgement 

  • University of Chicago claims “Likes” could be more addictive than cigarettes 

  • Focus on likes and re-tweets can lead to decreased understanding of verbal cues,  non-verbal cues, and facial expressions 

  • Compulsive use can lead to a neglect of daily activities 

  • Overuse may relate to mental health issues, chronic stress

  • Decreased amount of sleep, decreased quality of sleep, decreased down time

Parenting

  • Discuss your teens use of social media , work together to find a balance

  • Work on the actual goal that you want to achieve. If it is to get up in the am at a reasonable time, then work on ways to achieve that goal rather then strict regulations on use. many teens may be reasonable provided addiction hasn’t set in.

eye-1553789_1280.jpg

Disclaimer: Although I am a registered MD, information on this web site is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your physician or other healthcare professionals or any information contained on or in any product label or packaging. Please view this website’s “Disclaimer” for further details.

Social MediaCarolyn B1 Comment