Jesse Flores
Social media has become a profound influence on students’ lives, leading to mental health issues and hindering academic performance.
Paul Hoffman, director of Yale Mental Health and Counseling, emphasized that excessive use of social media is linked to mental health problems among students.
“Young adults who spend more time on social media and more time on their phones tend to experience more depression and anxiety and tend to not form as strong relationships,” Ada Fenick, professor of pediatrics at the School of Medicine, told me. to News.
Social media platforms encourage endless scrolling, impulsive behavior and the need for instant gratification. According to a studyAn estimated 210 million people worldwide suffer from social media and internet addiction.
Marc Potenza, professor of psychiatry, child studies and neuroscience at the School of Medicine, noted that with significant changes in the digital technology landscape, particularly with the rise of smartphones in recent decades, there have been significant changes in mental health care. especially in adolescents and young adults.
“Currently, about 95 percent of high school teens have access to smartphones, and based on Pew Research Center data, it is estimated that in both 2022 and 2023, about 46 percent of high school teens report using virtually being online all the time, up from about half that amount, about 24 percent, in 2015,” Potenza said.
The data linking social media use to anxiety and depression among adolescents prompted US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy to generate a study advisory in 2023 on the use of social media and the mental health of young people. Murthy also wrote one opinion in The New York Times that social media sites should include warning labels similar to those on tobacco and alcohol products to warn of the potential adverse effects of consumption.
As part of a science and technology collaboration initiative, Potenza and colleagues have developed a e-booklet that focuses on preventing problematic internet use. Potenza emphasized that it is important to set aside completely technology-free times and replace digital devices with analog devices when necessary, especially in the hour before bed.
“People can often feel coerced or engaged with content that can be harmful to their mental health, especially if they are going through a period of heightened anxiety or depression,” Hoffman wrote to the News. “It can be very important that people are aware of the content they consume, because the goal of the algorithms is often to mindlessly keep you engaged.”
Fenick told the News that social media companies have become quite good at creating “quick hits” that briefly make viewers feel like their “dopamine receptors are on fire.”
She encourages students to view their phones and social media as learning tools and not as easy access to entertainment for every minute of the day.
“Get off social media if you can, but if you feel like you want to use it, then I would set a limit on the amount of time you spend on social media,” Fenick said. “I would not only put a limit on the amount of time, but also on the apps you use. Think carefully about what you’re using it for and what your purpose is, and try to make sure you spend at least as much time or more interacting with other people in real life.
Francesco Casetti, Sterling Professor of Humanities and Film and Media Studies, and Neta Alexander, assistant professor of Film and Media Education in Algorithmic Literacy, noted the addictive nature of social media. This spring, the two professors will co-teach a new seminar called “Media Anxieties.”
Alexander explained that algorithmic recommendation systems are strategically designed to exploit cognitive vulnerabilities to maximize screen time.
“These platforms are designed to be addictive by using periodic rewards and evoking negative emotional responses such as anger, fear and jealousy, which are known to prolong our engagement and deepen our attachment to our devices,” Alexander said.
To limit the harmful effects of social media overuse, Alexander recommended that students download screen time apps that set strict limits, or “exclude” themselves from their favorite platform and prioritize personal activities. She also advised students to turn off notifications from social media apps or turn their smartphone screen to grayscale, which is less distracting and noticeable. She noted that implementing these simple strategies is especially important at night, when tech companies compete with sleep and users’ biological needs.
Alexander told the News that it is important not to generalize the effects and potential harms of social media platforms, as they depend on the user’s age, support system, lived experience and other factors.
“Social media platforms like Instagram and X have been shown to be linked to self-harm, anxiety, depression and social isolation,” Alexander wrote. “Such concerns are supported by empirical studies, including data collected, hidden and ignored by the tech companies themselves and revealed by whistleblowers.”
She explained that several disturbing trends have emerged, such as an epidemic of body dysmorphia, self-loathing and attention deficits, among teenagers living lives dependent on technology.
Alexander noted that the ubiquitous use of “beauty filters” and AI-generated images and videos are giving rise to impossible beauty standards and pushing young users toward dangerous and unnecessary plastic surgeries.
“Social media platforms quantify relationships, intimacy and attention by creating a 24/7 culture of swiping, liking and commenting,” Alexander wrote. “This can lead to increased anxiety and low self-esteem. (There is also a) constant need to keep abreast of the most up-to-date, increasingly expensive personal electronic and data packages, putting financial pressure on teenagers.”
Casetti told the News that he taught a class last semester titled “Terrified: Fear, Threats and Media,” and that one of the conditions for registering for the class was accepting the idea of a 24-hour social fast. media and to write a diary.
He noted that he received many surprise submissions and that a tenth of the class were unable to suspend their connection to the media for 24 hours.
“One student wrote that he accidentally touched the Instagram icon because it was an involuntary gesture,” Casetti said. “And once he reconnected to his Instagram, he broke his promise to be away from the social network for 24 hours.”
He noted that other students admitted to their surrender for other reasons, with one writing in their entry: “I was afraid of being alone with my thoughts.”
Casetti recalled that the unusual condition allowed students to realize how attached they were to social media and the damaging extent of their addiction.
“It’s wonderful to meet people, mix (and mingle). This is one of the great results of the journals my students wrote last year,” Casetti said. “Some of them wrote during the 24 hours in which they avoided being connected (online), that they had rediscovered the pleasure of reading a book, a physical book. That was fantastic… So I would say: be aware of it, use some moderation and discover the whole breadth of life’s pleasures and possibilities.’
Mental Health and Counseling has therapists available to work with students who feel that social media use is negatively impacting their mental health.