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Facebook proven to negatively impact mental health

english.tau.ac.il

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Re: Facebook proven to negatively impact mental health

#91
post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

True, I do use Facebook profiles to remember the names of the children of my friends/family. But I can't remember the last "wall" I saw that had anything from this year on it.

You're saying that your friends and family don't post to Facebook? In this light, your first comment was misleading. You implied that Facebook's post-display algorithm was suppressing your friends and family.

Not misleading, emblematic. Facebook's utilization has plummeted.

Re: Facebook proven to negatively impact mental health

#92
post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Quoted post unavailable.

The Unitarian church ordained their first gay minister in 1979 and conducted its first same sex marriage ceremony in 1984: https://www.hrc.org/resources/stances-of-faiths-on-lgbt-issu... Not that I'm advocating for UUA, I'm atheist myself, but from what I've heard it sounds like a hippie commune focused around the bible.

I'm not super in the know here, but I think it's possible you're mixing up Unitarianism with Unitarian Universalism.

Re: Facebook proven to negatively impact mental health

#93
Who needed a study? We've known this for years, and it was even speculated at the dawn of Friendster, MySpace, etc. Watching a society (the US, for example) slowly say "social media is bad" then continue to use it is like watching a stumbling drunk declare their ability to quit drinking anytime they want.

Re: Facebook proven to negatively impact mental health

#95

Anecdotally, Facebook seems relatively tame these days compared to the firehose of doom & gloom, violent videos, outrage porn, and outright misinformation that fills Reddit and Twitter. Browsing Reddit’s default feeds or popular posts is a wild experience these days.

Completely agree, Reddit at this point seems detached from reality. It's hard to believe it's the same site I was on 10 years ago.

I scan Facebook once every few days for updates from family members and frankly I find the experience entirely pleasant.

Cutting out Twitter and Reddit is one of the best decisions I've ever made for my mental health.

For me it's Hackernews and the Wall St. Journal.

Re: Facebook proven to negatively impact mental health

#96
post #47
post #13

I'd like to see similar study about the original gateway drug: "24-hour News Channels", which was followed by "24-hour Outrage-News Channels". Seems like we've been building toward this, the interactivity of the internet was the paradigm shift (to use a 90's term). EDIT: I realize it isn't news messing with youths' self-esteem (well, in some cases it is), but it is related in that the media is custom-made to drive en…

Right, engagement at all cost it is, but there is a fundamental difference. Television required professionals where even wrestling and reality TV is scripted: it requires some sort of willful ignorance from the viewer to engage with it. Social media pushes the illusion that you are not engaging with professionals but peers, and the dominant signals (how many views, likes, comments, etc.) of this day and age were not…

Facebook brought us in with the promise of keeping in touch with friends, but the incentives are to "engagement at all costs". I'm hoping that if we can offer an alternative that lets people keep up with their friends without the engagememt incentive then we could greatly improve societal mental health. Thats why I build Haven[1] as open source and self hosted, along with several 3rd party hosting providers. No central entity means no "engagement at all costs".

[1] https://havenweb.org

Re: Facebook proven to negatively impact mental health

#97
The study uses historical data, change in mental health before and after Facebook was introduced to a campus. Which is a very cool way to make use of a natural control. Nice study.

Seems clear facebook had negative impact on mental health on campus.

Facebook then was also likely very different from Facebook now. So not exactly sure what recommendations for today can be drawn from it.

It's interesting to note that the data shows facebook was damaging mental health at the same time that many readers of this comment were most enthusiastic about Facebook.

Re: Facebook proven to negatively impact mental health

#99
As with all studies in the social sciences, one of two principles apply.

First, if the conclusions are counterintuitive or unexpected, then when you look closer, you will find that the methodology is garbage and that it does not support the conclusions given.

Second, if the conclusions reflect things that you believe are true, when you look closer, you will find that the methodology is garbage and that it does not support the conclusions given.

Re: Facebook proven to negatively impact mental health

#100
post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you care to elaborate? Why do you say it's specious?

Well engagement implies a certain amount to decision making and real-time action. TV watching is pretty much passive, and I just have a hard time believing the brain is impacted similarly but such different types of activity.

I think "engagement" in the discussion here is more of a term of art, and it's not really a question of what it implies.
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