Digital technology is a double-edged sword which ruins us as much as it helps. On one hand, it makes our lives better and easier. On the other hand, it also introduces a slew of social and psychological problems which disrupts the way we communicate and see the world. The thing is, you can now alleviate that negative aspect of digital technology, by reducing social media usage, so says a research finding.
Pennsylvania State University is surely on to something here. For they are probably the first to measure the negative mental and psychological effects of social media on people. A result of a new study conducted by the said university has concluded that social media is indeed bad and can worsen depression and loneliness or even create it.
Penn State carried out its study with the help of 143 college students. Part of that said sample size was instructed to limit their social media usage to just 10 minutes for the duration of the research. Consequently, the others were instructed to bask in social media. The mental health and social support of the subjects were also monitored since the purpose of the study is to gauge how it destroys or builds-up self-esteem.
Unsurprisingly, those who used their phones less displayed an improved overall state of mental health. Those who had constant access to social media had negative effects on their mental health.
The researchers speculate that it was the social comparison which is detrimental to mental health and self-esteem since FB, Instagram, etc. tends to display the best snapshots of one’s life, genuine or otherwise. Regardless, being on your phone all day is not healthy for any aspect of your health. So get out there, remove that rosy filter, and experience the world.
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