Research Paper about Social Media

Social media has changed the way people interact in society for the worse. With screens becoming popular, Americans have become reclusive and anti-social creatures. Individuals have become less interested in face-to-face communication and lack interpersonal connections. All this goes to show how detrimental social media is to society. Crumbling relationships, dangerous dares, and wasting time are all destructive side effects of the web. All these causes and more proof that social media is the host of issues and dilemmas that lead to depression and anxiety. We are only beginning to explore all the unwelcome dangers of the internet community.

Social media has been the cause of many ruined relationships. It is easier than ever to see if you are being ignored or left out. With a simple tap, you can see what your friends have posted or their activity status. Seeing pictures of your friends having a fun time without you can make teens lonely and sad. In addition, social media gives the illusion that the more friends the better. Dunbar, a professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Oxford, states that there is still a limit to friendships even while you're on social media. Dunbar explains in his quote, “But Dunbar’s recent study, published in 2016, suggests that even though social media allows us to “break through the glass ceiling” of maintaining offline relationships and having larger social networks, it does not overcome our natural capacity for friendships.” He expresses that even if social media allows us to have many friends, chatting with them can be draining. Excessive stimulation from chatting with so many people can lead to feelings of exhaustion and irritation. Social media has created many fragile friendships that with a single text message, can shatter. 

Teenagers often don't see or think of the consequences of their actions. This especially goes for social media challenges that seem “cool” or “daring”. Teenagers will jump at the chance to gain attention by doing these challenges. Dares such as the “Tide Pod Challenge”, have ended with injuries or death. Teens often don't think about what might happen to them when they take part in dares like this. The internet community can persuade teens into partaking in these deadly dares. The abuse of substances is also a challenge that is found in social media. “Stop Medicine Abuse” states that the challenges that have teens abuse substances end with serious injury or death. The authors explain that This TikTok trend, dubbed “the Benadryl challenge”, urges teens to take large doses of over-the-counter (OTC) medicines containing the active ingredient diphenhydramine. Overdosing on diphenhydramine can lead to hallucinations and can be life-threatening. There have been reports that allege serious illness and death as a result of the challenge.” Challenges such as these aren't to be taken because they often result in serious injury and death. Teenagers must open their eyes if they don't want to fall victim to these deadly dares. 

Adding on, social media can become a major distraction, especially when it comes d to teens. Scrolling endlessly for hours is something all teens are guilty of. With all the chats and direct messaging available, it can be hard not to spend hours on end texting your friends. Social media always has something new for you no matter what and all the constant updating can leave you glued to your phone for hours. Teenagers are especially vulnerable to this because they always want to stay up to date. Watching funny videos or looking at memes can eat up your time as well. Streaming services such as Netflix lull teens into spending hours on their couches. Lauren Angelastro from the Eastside staff explains to us why we waste so much time on services like these. She states Netflix and Hulu can steal someone’s time for hours because students would much rather watch their favorite shows and movies than work on their homework. It also provides a way to procrastinate the workload.¨ These platforms can take away from anyone time because we would all much rather watch TV than do our work.” It can be hard to resist, especially when it is something you'd rather be doing something else. Yet, some may argue that social media helps teens socialize, this isn't the case as teenagers often end up scrolling for hours. To conclude, social media has been sucking away our social relationships. It has transformed us into distant and secluded beings. With relationships falling apart, dangerous dares, and procrastination, it is clear the internet community is taking a toll on us. It’s not too late though, will you choose to become another tech-obsessed zombie, or will you break away and make real-life connections.