Social Media Addiction
The introduction of Social Media is revolutionary, it meant that people could connect and interact with people across the world. Meeting new people, finding things in common and becoming good friends. It’s even hard to imagine life without social media, because it has changed many people’s lives. From the creation of Facebook to Instagram. Social media can also help with social connections for example, they don’t have to deal with the stress that comes from meeting new people face-to-face. For example, they don’t have to worry about being faced with an awkward silence when they feel pressure to speak but aren’t quite sure what they should say next.
Texting doesn’t always require an immediate response, so people with less confidence in their social skills can take the time to come up with an adequate answer and reply with less pressure than in a face-to-face situation. In a longitudinal study, researchers concluded that instant messaging increases the quality of existing friendships because adolescents feel less inhibited and disclose their inner thoughts and feelings to one another earlier on, which enhances the relationship.
This is just one example of how Social Media can benefit society, but here is an opposing example of how Social Media can be dangerous.
Social Media addiction is a major problem and affects many, but mostly Young People. They spend hours and hours scrolling through their feed, possibly making them sleep deprived as they are on their phone, rather than getting sleep or worrying about the amount of likes and followers they are receiving and Young people can base their worth on the number of followers they have, believing that if they have a small number of followers they feel ‘Uncool’ or ‘worthless’, which is not the case at all but this is the effect of Social media and can play a big part in mental health issues in the future.
- Ayaan Sheikh (Sir George Monoux College)
