Why is social media so addicting? While social media can seem like mindless and relaxing fun,
it actually has a significant effect on your brain
. Whenever you log on to your favorite apps, dopamine signals in your brain increase. These neurotransmitters are associated with pleasure.
Amongst the most widely-recognised causes of addiction to social media are
low self-esteem
, personal dissatisfaction, depression and hyperactivity, and even lack of affection, a deficiency that adolescents frequently try to replace with the famous likes.
An additional reason why teens may be addicted to social media is
because of how quickly and easily they can communicate with their friends
, no matter where either of them are. … Additionally, if a teenager is feeling isolated or disconnected from their family or friends, they may turn to social media.
First, social media addiction may mean more time spent online and less time spent on study.
Excessive social media use interrupts students’ time management
, which further affects academic performance (Macan, Shahani, Dipboye, & Phillips, 1990).
Social media has the
ability to both capture and scatter your attention
. … Not only does this lead to poorer cognitive performance, but it shrinks parts of the brain associated with maintaining attention.
As many parents probably already know,
their teenage kids can be absolutely addicted to social media
. … FOMO is one of the main reasons why many teenagers feel the compulsive need to spend a decent chunk of their time on social media; to make sure they are up-to-date with all happenings in order to fit in.
Excessive social media use can not only
cause unhappiness
and a general dissatisfaction with life in users but also increase the risk of developing mental health issues such as anxiety and depression.
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.
You are
anxious
when you cannot check your social media
If being away from your phone or without internet, and the prospect of not being able to go on social media for a while, makes you feel anxious , it is likely that you have a social media addiction.
Too much use of social media can have adverse effects on students’ minds, and they may also be exposed to
bad posture, eye strain, and physical and mental stress
.
Social media use reduces the amount of time that students spend on academic activities
. … This is because they spend time chatting online and making friends on social media sites instead of reading books. This has a negative effect on their academic performance (Owusu-Acheaw and Larson, 2015, Abbas et al., 2019).
Social media plays an important role in every student’s life. It is often
easier and more convenient to access information, provide information and communicate via social media
. Tutors and students can be connected to each other and can make good use of these platforms for the benefit of their learning and teaching.
- cyberbullying (bullying using digital technology)
- invasion of privacy.
- identity theft.
- your child seeing offensive images and messages.
- the presence of strangers who may be there to ‘groom’ other members.
In fact, experts worry that the social media and text messages that have become so integral to teenage life are promoting anxiety and lowering self-esteem. … The survey results found that Snapchat,
Facebook
, Twitter and Instagram all led to increased feelings of depression, anxiety, poor body image and loneliness.
Social media use has also been associated with
cyber bullying and cyber abuse
by anonymous users online, which leads to problems of self-esteem, privacy ,etc. Most studies have shown that, social media’s violent games result in increase in violent tendencies and behaviours in children.
According to a 2016 study in the journal Computers in Human Behavior,
4.1 percent of boys and 3.6 percent of girls
who are intense social media users display Internet addiction. Among casual social media users, 1.7 percent of boys and virtually no girls are addicted, according to study results.
