Does it damage it more than TV? is the question I always ask when I read that kind of headlines.
Heavy social media use associated with lower mental health in adolescents
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Re: Heavy social media use associated with lower mental health in adolescents
#12Loneliness damages peoples' mental health, too. Is there some chance that, for mental health, the ordering goes "in-person interaction > social media interaction > no interaction at all"? Then of course if you compare social media interaction with in-person interaction you may conclude that social media = bad, but the causality may (in part) be the other way around, as the article says: > “Those who feel worse may tu…
You can't order it by the type of interaction.
"I used to think that the worst thing in life was to end up alone. It’s not. The worst thing in life is to end up with people who make you feel all alone."
What makes social media so bad is that hundreds, thousands and more from all over the world can attack you. In-person thats seldom the case.
On the other hand, you can more easily ignore online comments than real life comments.
Re: Heavy social media use associated with lower mental health in adolescents
#13The article mentions a myriad of factors that correlate with mental health issues going into adolescence. It’s interesting that the headline targets social media, as the body of the article doesn’t seem to highlight it as an especially strong correlation.
As a side note, the differing trends of boys and girls after adolescence is really interesting.
> However, it recognised that girls' self-esteem and wellbeing stabilises as they move into their late teens, whereas it continues to drop for boys
Will have to read the source material to see if they propose any causes for that
Re: Heavy social media use associated with lower mental health in adolescents
#14Lets not pretend that the current news media is any different. There is no objective fact reporting, only fear mongering.
Re: Heavy social media use associated with lower mental health in adolescents
#15There are entire subreddits dedicated to mocking this point, like /r/PhonesAreBad, and /r/InsaneParents. I doubt half the screenshots they post of text message conversations are even real -- but the point gets across. Phones are the most wonderful thing that keep us connected to each other, and only crude luddites living in the dark ages who don't understand the benefit they provide would take them away from a kid down spiraling into depression.
It's almost like there's this gravitational well of depressed anxious people, and they don't want anyone to escape.
Re: Heavy social media use associated with lower mental health in adolescents
#16Don't mean to sound deep and profound here but I think life in general damages your mental health. Social media just brings it to you in a superficial format. But I do also believe those little notifications can be addictive.
That's very cynical. It's possible to enjoy life more and more as time goes on. Read Triumphs of Experience. My dad is one of those lucky people.
Besides, even if life itself /is/ damaging in general, that doesn't explain the teen suicide rate etc, or any of the findings from this report specifically pertaining to teens.
Re: Heavy social media use associated with lower mental health in adolescents
#17Life is hard enough without social media.
You will be harshly judged on social media and treated with contempt.
Re: Heavy social media use associated with lower mental health in adolescents
#18I'm starting to wonder if mass media in general is bad for our mental health, and if we'd be better off unplugging as much as we can from everything - social media, TV, radio, Hacker News, etc. and spending more time with our community. I suppose the problem is, most communities are completely addicted to this stuff, so we're left in a situation where it's hard for most people to unplug for any long period of time without isolating themselves.
Re: Heavy social media use associated with lower mental health in adolescents
#19Loneliness damages peoples' mental health, too. Is there some chance that, for mental health, the ordering goes "in-person interaction > social media interaction > no interaction at all"? Then of course if you compare social media interaction with in-person interaction you may conclude that social media = bad, but the causality may (in part) be the other way around, as the article says: > “Those who feel worse may tu…
You can't order it by the type of interaction. "I used to think that the worst thing in life was to end up alone. It’s not. The worst thing in life is to end up with people who make you feel all alone." What makes social media so bad is that hundreds, thousands and more from all over the world can attack you. In-person thats seldom the case. On the other hand, you can more easily ignore online comments than real life…
Where did that quote come from? Excellent point.
Someone once commented on how we can't go for a drive in the car without having some music on to distract us from thinking. I wonder if we don't want to be alone with our thoughts.
Re: Heavy social media use associated with lower mental health in adolescents
#20Life is hard enough without social media. You will be harshly judged on social media and treated with contempt.
What the fuck kind of social media are you guys talking about? Reddit and 4Chan?
I use Facebook, everyone (that's people I know in person) is extremely nice to me on there, never got any contempt at all. We share pictures and funny memes and plan events on there. I used Facebook to reconnect with a childhood friend who I lost touch with and now we talk all the time. My husband did the exact same thing with Myspace a decade before.