Role of social media in tackling challenges in mental health

Author(s):  
Munmun De Choudhury
Keyword(s):  
Author(s):  
Gunnhild Johnsen Hjetland ◽  
Viktor Schønning ◽  
Bodil Elisabeth Valstad Aasan ◽  
Randi Træland Hella ◽  
Jens Christoffer Skogen

The extent of mental health problems among adolescents seems to be on the rise, and this observed trend has often been linked to a coinciding increase in social media use. The goal of the current preliminary study was to investigate how senior high school personnel experience the role of social media in relation to the mental health of their pupils. Two focus group interviews (total n = 11) were completed and analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis, resulting in 4 themes and 11 subthemes. The results illustrate that school personnel experience social media as a tool for communication, but also as a potential cause of mental health issues and reduced academic performance among pupils. The participants called for schools to become better equipped to meet the opportunities and challenges of social media.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Warner Myntti ◽  
Jensen Spicer ◽  
Carol Janney ◽  
Stacey Armstrong ◽  
Sarah Domoff

Adolescents are spending more time interacting with peers online than in person, evidencing the need to examine this shift’s implications for adolescent loneliness and mental health. The current review examines research documenting an association between social media use and mental health, and highlights several specific areas that should be further explored as mechanisms within this relationship. Overall, it appears that frequency of social media use, the kind of social media use, the social environment, the platform used, and the potential for adverse events are especially important in understanding the relationship between social media use and adolescent mental health.


Author(s):  
Melanie Keep ◽  
Anna Janssen ◽  
Krestina Amon

Sharing images online, particularly through social networking sites (SNSs), is a widespread activity. The popularity of image sharing on SNSs has provided researchers with a unique opportunity for investigating how and why we communicate with each other via images. This chapter discusses research about photo sharing on three popular SNSs: Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat. The unique affordances of each platform have resulted in differences in the images people share on them, and why people choose to share or view different images across the different SNSs. Personal characteristics also shape how and why we share images online. The chapter, therefore, also considers the role of age, gender, and personality on image sharing behaviors and preferences. Finally, the chapter outlines our current understanding of the interrelationship between image sharing and mental health. This chapter thus considers: Who shares images on social media? What do they share? Why do they share these images? What are the mental health consequences of image sharing on SNSs?


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophia Choukas-Bradley ◽  
Savannah Roberts ◽  
Anne J. Maheux ◽  
Jacqueline Nesi

In this theoretical review paper, we provide a developmental–sociocultural framework for the role of social media (SM) in contributing to adolescent girls’ body image concerns, and in turn, depressive symptoms and disordered eating. We propose that the features of SM (e.g., idealized images of peers, quantifiable feedback) intersect with adolescent developmental factors (e.g., salience of peer relationships) and sociocultural gender socialization processes (e.g., societal over-emphasis on girls’ and women’s physical appearance) to create the “perfect storm” for exacerbating girls’ body image concerns. We argue that, ultimately, body image concerns may be a key mechanism underlying associations between adolescent girls’ SM use and mental health. In the context of proposing this framework, we provide empirical evidence for how SM may increase adolescent girls’ body image concerns through heightening their focus on: (1) other people’s physical appearance (e.g., through exposure to idealized images of peers, celebrities, and SM influencers; quantifiable indicators of approval); and (2) their own appearance (e.g., through appearance-related SM consciousness; exposure to one’s own image; encouraging over-valuing of appearance; and peer approval of photos/videos). Our framework highlights new avenues for future research on adolescent girls’ SM use and mental health, which recognize the central role of body image.


2019 ◽  
pp. 089443931985707
Author(s):  
Irum Saeed Abbasi ◽  
Jayson L. Dibble

Online social interactions can potentially benefit users. Excessive use and certain behaviors, however, may cause interpersonal problems and promote toxic behaviors such as stalking. The present study explored the link between mental health status and social media intrusion (addiction) in a sample of 243 married/cohabiting romantic partners (female 177, male 66). The sample was divided into two groups based on the diagnosis or nondiagnosis of mental/emotional illness. We also tested a mediation model to examine whether social networking sites (SNS) related infidelity behaviors mediate the link between mental health and social media intrusion. The results revealed that there is a positive relationship between mental illness and SNS intrusion, and SNS related infidelity behaviors partially mediated this relationship. These findings suggest that partners should be cautious when making friends online and should take proactive steps to avoid the possibility of engaging in infidelity behaviors. Therapeutic implications and limitations of the study are discussed.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hassan Ebrahimpour Sadagheyani ◽  
Farin Tatari

Purpose Today with the internet expansion, social media has also been identified as a factor in evolutions. Social media is the title used to refer to the set of sites and tools that have been born and developed in the space created by modern media such as communication networks, the internet and mobile phones. The effects of emerging phenomena, such as social media on human health, especially mental health, are important. As the effects of social media on users mental health is unclear, and the evidence in this field is contradictory, this study aims to determine the role of social media on mental health. Design/methodology/approach The current study was a review conducted in 2020. According to keywords, an extensive search was conducted on Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, Magiran and SID databases. In total, 501 articles were obtained. The articles were screened in three stages. Finally, out of 501 evaluated articles, 50 cases were carefully assessed and included in the study. Findings The findings showed that social media has negative and positive effects on mental health. Negative effects included anxiety, depression, loneliness, poor sleep quality, poor mental health indicators, thoughts of self-harm and suicide, increased levels of psychological distress, cyber bullying, body image dissatisfaction, fear of missing out and decreased life satisfaction. Positive effects included accessing other people’s health experiences and expert health information, managing depression, emotional support and community building, expanding and strengthening offline networks and interactions, self-expression and self-identity, establish and maintain relationships. Originality/value The impact of social media on mental health can be considered as a double-edged sword. The important thing is to be able to reduce the negative effects of social media on mental health and turn it into an opportunity by implementing appropriate strategies and actions and to increase and strengthen the positive effects.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Indieva Miss Angela Zahrany

The existence of social media that is growing so rapidly that teenagers, especially students, cannot be separated from social media in their daily lives. This is because social media can meet the needs of students, such as communication, existence and information search. Social media itself will certainly have positive and negative impacts. If students are addicted to social media, it can cause mental disorders such as uncontrolled emotions, anxiety, irritability, jealousy, and even losing their self-confidence. With qualitative research methods and interviews with eleven university students in March Surakarta, the author can explain the role of social media in the mental health conditions of students at Sebelas Maret University. The impact caused by social media can be overcome in various ways, one of which is to be able to use social media wisely. The purpose of this study was to find out how influential social media was on mental health in eleven university students in March Surakarta. The results showed that social media is very influential on students' mental health, this can be proven by the number of students who lack confidence in the potential that exists within them.


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