Is Social Media an Enemy from Within?

Everyone uses social media to interact and to see what is happening in the world today. Teens and adults have come used to using social media in their lives, not knowing about the effects. Social media can be good, bad, or it may not mean anything to others it may depend on people’s viewpoint. Some people struggle with mental illnesses like depression. Social media can be the stem of depression. Giving some facts and advice to help people struggling is very important. Social media means something different to everyone.

Uses with Social Media

Talking in person we can connect better with people. Connections with family members and friends (both new and old) are a primary consideration in their adoption of social media tools, Aaron Smith, director of Data Labs at Pew Research. I use it as a way to get ahold of my friends because it’s hard for me to call/text where I live because the service isn’t the best so it doesn’t always go through and I just like it more, Emman Norman a senior at JHS explains why she uses social media

Effects

Some experts see the rise in depression as evidence that the connections social media users form electronically are less emotionally satisfying, leaving them feeling socially isolated, Caroline Miller editorial director of the Child Mind Institute and website editor, explains depression rising. Mr. Withers a teacher at JHS gives his thoughts, I think if you are connected to it, and you spend a lot of time on it, I think that it can. I think if you monitor the amount of time and what you use it for, I don’t think it necessarily will inherently affect depression.

Staying Connected

People love getting to know facts and statistics, especially those they were previously unaware of. Social causes always have a range of statistics, research, and knowledge to share to enlighten an audience, Rochelle Ceira a writer for Georgetown University gives her stance. Mr. Withers further explains his thoughts, we can stay informed about what’s happening in world events a lot easier and be more in tune with what’s happening in other people’s lives.

Limits

The group that limited social media showed significant reductions in loneliness and depression over three weeks compared to the control group. Due to their findings, the university strongly suggested that limiting social media use to approximately 30 minutes per day may lead to significant improvement in well-being, Noah Shoaf a writer for Ke Alaka’i gives his ideas. Evan Burgess a senior at Zeeland East gives his standings, I don’t think that app should limit it, but I think people should limit themselves. I don’t think that’s the social media platforms’ responsibility. I think that’s a personal responsibility.

Listen and see how many times the phone goes off with notifications. This can be from different apps you never use. Imagine scrolling through apps and seeing all the likes and comments. People from all oversee posts on social media. All these things affect how you think and sometimes not in a good way. Still being able to use to see how the world is but not abusing that limit is good. Being able to use it wisely is smart. Social media has turned the world upside down, in positive and negative ways.