Research Paper Sample: Mental Health Issues and Increased Social Media Usage

Abstract

This paper explores the correlation of increased social media use and decreased feelings of well-being. Many people use social media to keep in contact with their friends and family, but when individuals spend hours on popular apps, such as Snapchat, Instagram, or Tik Tok they are at risk for developing mental health problems. 

Studies show that there are increased reports of anxiety and depression for individuals who spend more 

time on social media than their peers. 3 papers as well as quantitative data are used as a cross sectional research design to explore 

the effects that increased social media usage has on mental health. Resources are proposed in this research to increase education on the negative effects of social media, and to recognize when to decrease social media use. The goal is to prevent increased mental health issues due to social media use. 

Introduction

Socializing is an important part of maintaining mental health and in today’s world, socializing without seeing the other person, is possible and sometimes preferred. Many people use social media apps to talk to their friends or family. Data shows that “Around 86% of 18- to 29-year-olds use [] platforms [such as Snapchat, Instagram, and Tik Tok]. Another 80% of people aged 30-49 and 64% of people aged 50-64 are on social media. Even one-third of adults over 65 use it, compared to just 10% in 2010.” (2020, Clark). Increased usage of social media has negative effects. Between the years 2008-2017 (Snapchat and Instagram were created during these years), the amount of “psychological distress in young adults grew to 71%” (2020, Clark) and from 2007-2017, rates of suicide among youth and young adults, ages 10-24, increased to 56% (Nessi, 2020). During the years of 2007-2017 was a time when Snapchat and Instagram gained popularity. Snapchat was created in 2011 and Instagram in 2010. This correlation between increased social media use and increased psychological distress and suicide may continue to rise. What causes an individual to overuse social media? When an individual feels lonely, depressed, anxious, or stressed, it’s more likely for them to spend hours on social media to feel more connected to others. What strategies can be used to prevent decreased mental health due to increased social media use? Encouraging people to recognize the signs of loneliness, depression, anxiety, and stress and providing resources with information about healthy ways to cope with these difficult emotions rather than using social media as a quick solution may decrease mental health problems. 

Literature Review

Multiple research studies have shown a correlation between decreased mental health and increased social media use (2020, Adler, and 2020, Nessi). Individuals tend to use social media more when they feel negative emotions, such as boredom, stress, anxiety, or loneliness. Scrolling on social media provides a quick fix from feeling and regulating emotions. (2021, Robinson, Smith). Regulating emotions is important for maintaining mental health and not building this skill may cause issues. Mental health issues are prevalent with social media use for both youth and adults. For youth, online bullying may be a risk for developing mental health concerns. In addition, exposure to risky behavior such as suicide may increase the likelihood for someone to commit the act, and comparison to their peers which can lead to feelings of low self-esteem (2021, Robinson, Smith). Furthermore, when adults spend time on social media when they feel stressed or anxious this may cause them to socially isolate themselves (2020, Adler). Social isolation from spending time on social media can create a vicious cycle ending with the urge to spend more time on social media.

The cycle begins with feeling negative, going on social media, negative feelings increase, the individual continues the spend time on social media, isolating from peers which causes them to feel lonely, and the cycle continues. Increased isolation is a risk factor for developing depression or anxiety and in certain cases, a comorbid case of the two. 

For both youths and adults, interacting with peers online may be convenient, but it is a risk factor for feeling socially isolated. It seems like a contradiction, but it has sparked the interest of some researchers. Brian Primack who is the dean of health professions at the University of Arkansas, was interested to find if social media increases feelings of loneliness. He surveyed 1,787 adults ages 19-32 about their social media use, and how often they feel isolated. (Hobson, 2017). He found that individuals who used social media more than 2 hours a day reported higher levels of social isolated than people who used social media less than 2 hours a day (Hobson, 2017).

Discussion

Current Resources 

Phone usage apps such as: social fever, offtime, and moment help social media users become aware of the time that they spend on their phones. Although there is not current data to show how effective these resources are in decreasing social media use. Additionally, mental health resources to manage mental health such as books, articles, and videos are useful tools to processing negative emotions. The negative emotions that many people who overuse social media are avoiding. Also, tools to manage stress such as mindfulness, exercise, nutrition, and getting enough rest, help decrease negative feelings which may lead to a decrease in time spent on social media. These tools are available through most university and secondary school resources.

Proposed Resources

Although many resources are available to improve mental health and decrease social media use, it is likely that these resources aren’t used because people aren’t aware of them. Providing posters, pamphlets, and education to the public about the negative impact that social media has on mental health, and resources to improve mental health and decrease time spent on social media, may increase the use of media tracker apps, and the resources to manage mental health. 

Limitations

There is a lack of data proving that the correlation 

Conclusion and Future Studies

Increased social media use throughout the past decade has caused a decrease in the wellbeing of youth and young adults. When apps such as Snapchat, and Instagram became popular, depression, anxiety, and suicide rates increased. This correlation shows that it is likely that mental health is being affected by social media. To decrease time spent on social media, programs to help individuals recognize negative emotions and ways to regulate and cope with them, made available through secondary education and university, may be beneficial. Additionally, educating youth and young adults about the negative affects that social media has on the brain may decrease usage. 

References

Clark, M. (2020, December 9). 40+ frightening social media and Mental Health Statistics. Etactics. Retrieved December 16, 2021, from https://etactics.com/blog/social-media-and-mental-health-statistics 

Karim, F., Oyewande, A. A., Abdalla, L. F., Chaudhry Ehsanullah, R., & Khan, S. (2020, June 15). Social media use and its connection to Mental Health: A Systematic Review. Cureus. Retrieved December 16, 2021, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7364393/ 

Nesi, J. (2020, March 1). The impact of social media on Youth Mental Health. North Carolina Medical Journal. Retrieved December 16, 2021, from https://www.ncmedicaljournal.com/content/81/2/116 

Robinson, L. (2021, December 3). Social Media and Mental Health. HelpGuide.org. Retrieved December 16, 2021, from https://www.helpguide.org/articles/mental-health/social-media-and-mental-health.htm 

Magsam, S. (2020, December 10). Increased social media use linked to developing depression, research finds. University of Arkansas News. Retrieved December 16, 2021, from https://news.uark.edu/articles/55480/increased-social-media-use-linked-to-developing-depression-research-finds 

MediLexicon International. (n.d.). Social Media and Mental Health: Depression and psychological effects. Medical News Today. Retrieved December 16, 2021, from https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/social-media-and-mental-health#the-link 

Hobson, K. (2017, March 6). Feeling lonely? too much time on social media may be why. NPR. Retrieved December 16, 2021, from https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/03/06/518362255/feeling-lonely-too-much-time-on-social-media-may-be-why.