Introduction
How does social media affect today’s society?
Social media addiction is a term that is often used to refer to someone who spends too much time on social media like Instagram and Twitter or other forms of social media. As a result, it affects a person’s daily life. Although there is no official real medical proof that social media is an actual disease, it is, in fact, an addiction. It may not be a substance addiction but it is sociological anomaly. For example, some people constantly check updates on Instagram or are “lurking” a term used to define their digital actions watching someone’s every move for hours at a time. Social media will have people continually scrolling for hours on ends with no real purpose or anything really beneficial. People have gotten so addicted they monitor their likes and the amount of comments they get on a photo or video and the amount of views they get Whenever there is no internet available they often feel stressed and uneasy. In this review of literature the following research question was examined: “How does social media affect today’s society?” For the purposes of clarity the following term must be defined. Social media are websites and applications that enable users to create and share content or to participate in social networking. The following subtopics were examined in this discussion paper literature; its connection to mental health, how it affects adolescence and finally how its affects today’s society .
Social media connection with mental health
Today’s research shows that there is an association with increased social media and society mental health mental health. Amelia Strickland is professor at University of Central Florida and she concludes that adolescents, are the most progressing social media users, have a high risk of developing mental health issues, making it such a concerning issue particularly concerning. (Strickland, 2014) many studies have connections between social media use and its negative results such as increased anxiety, depression, compulsive behavior, narcissism, and loneliness. The use of social sites by adolescents brought up on goings about these possible negative effects of its use (Strickland, 2014). There is several studies connecting social media to anxiety and compulsive behavior. research study discovered that adults indicated they feel anxious or uneasy when they cant go into their email or social websites or applications. Even so the younger era tend to continuously check social applications many times thought out he day . people who tend to spend the night checking social media are more likely to suffer from mood problems swings such as neuroticism and bipolar disorder, and tend to be more unhappy and lonely. Adolescents who reported low friendship quality and high use of social sites for (talking to friends, messaging, etc) at one time were less likely to be depressed at Times. (Strickland, 2014)
In fact as a result of this those with low friendships tend to use social media primarily . are more willing to be depressed and fear of social situations that involve interaction with other people. Also evidence for an contrary connection between Internet use and depression,show that people who gamig have less of a change of developing depression .(Strickland, 2014) In a study of Narcissism and the connected of social media found that for people with high levels of narcissism, high levels of social media activity such as snapchat , instagram and twitter were associated with lower levels of depression. (Strickland, 2014) Despite the lower levels of depression were found, this still can’t be counteract as a positive effect. Also narcissistic personality disorder is distinct by a high sense of self-importance , self-promotion, vanity, and superficial relationships. In conclusion social media affect more and more people over the years mainly adolescents.
Social media’s impact on adolescence
Many adolescents are affected by social media in this day and age it can be positive but it can also so negatives. Social media has driven adolescents to depression addiction of social media low self-esteem and lack of friendships. Jeff Stafford, Professor of Communication, Department of Communication Studies, Eastern Washington University. He concludes that a large number of adolescents do not realize that they are being influenced by these social media apps such as Snapchat and Instagram. These apps or sites included these teens to buy some random product they think they need to look like someone else. or just believing they need a random product which they really don’t and say they want to be like that person and it’s already pretty bad that so many of these teen are victims of hate comments from their peers online or even grown adults because people find it easier to be rude or irreverent over a screen than in person and also many of there bullies are strangers, in fact, many teens are lured by sexual predators but in other ways social media can improve your knowledge about others backgrounds and providing support, (Stafford, 2018) social media sites and also been a place for mental health support because of someone people do have supportive follows who tell them positives messages to brighten their day, not only that but teens can anonymously seek medical advice. And even political change in the world and justice for the people who suffer from discrimination. Social media also gives a chance for adolescents to connect with others who share somewhat of the same interest. Social media apps have given the ability for adolescents to share their interests in dance, music and fashion and blogs with others ( Stafford, 2018).
Addiction of social media in society
Consumers have interacted with brands so much online and through social media channels that their interactions can now greatly impact a company’s value. Courtney Wainner is a Communication Studies Chancellor’s Honors Program The University of Tennessee she concludes This adds another facet to social media addiction, as users may feel compelled to post things or contact companies to gain attention online, especially with negative experiences with companies. The idea of ‘going viral’,or achieving internet fame, can be related to this concept.( Wainner,2018 ) . The proposed analysis criteria for smartphone addiction includes factor of addiction, such as withdraw, repeated failures at resisting the device, persistent desire to use their tablets smartphone or computer , usage that results in a physical or psychological problem, the usage of these devices result in dangerous hazards such as like crossing the road or texting driving, use that results in impairment of relationships or academic and/or professional achievement, and usage that results in significant distress.
Conclusion
In this review of literature the following research question was examined: “How does social media affect today’s society?” This paper focused on the negative habit of excessive use of social media. This addictive behavior leads to negative effects for someone who has a uncontrollable use of social media. Social media has become a place for people to express their feelings and communicate with one another. People can say anything they want and believe they can get away on the internet. This has leds to cyberbullying, where people use the online communication to direct messages in an intimidating or threatening environment . People tend also brag or boost which has caused people become jealous of others. Social media has made today’s society less productive and people seem to have gotten in the habit of checking for updates on their, devices that has had negative effects in their personal relationships jobs and education.
If this topic was further investigated it is recommended that that research focus on how much time they spend on social media, the economic cost of being a digital native. Finally, a correlational study needs to been done on the benefits of Apple devices that can now limit your screen time on social media and whether or not this help reduce potential social media addictions.