Use in Moderation
Hunt M.G, et al. “No More Fomo: Limiting Social Media Decreases Loneliness and Depression.” Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, vol. 37, no. 10, 2018, pp. 751–768., doi:10.1521/jscp.2018.37.10.751.
This scholarly article details the research done at the University of Pennsylvania to gather data on whether or not limiting social media use will help improve a person's well-being. The study was conducted with 143 undergraduate students, with 71 being tested in the fall semester and 71 in the spring. The study split them into two groups: one group who was told to use social media as usual, and one group who was told to limit their use to ten minutes a day. The results showed that loneliness and depressive symptoms decreased in the experimental group.
Berryman C, et al. “Social Media Use and Mental Health among Young Adults.” The Psychiatric Quarterly, vol. 89, no. 2, 2018, pp. 307–314., doi:10.1007/s11126-017-9535-6.
This scholarly article looks into whether or not social media use can reflect a person’s mental health. The study included 467 young adults and the results concluded a few key things. First, subjects feeling they needed to belong was associated negatively with social media use. The second key point is that vaguebooking, which is posting slightly ominous messages that could be a cry for help, was associated with increased risk of suicide.
Focus Group. “Social Media Moderation Is Key.” The Focus Group, 6 Oct. 2016, focusgroupms.com/social-media/social-media-moderation-key/.
In this article, the author describes how social media can be abused and cause a disconnection from the real world. She explains that while it is true that social media can be beneficial to society such as amber alerts, staying connected with distant family, or being able to take photos so easily, social media can also have serious negative effects if used too often. She describes how some people in our society are becoming addicted to it and unable to connect to the real world anymore.
Avoid Comparison
Nesi J, and Prinstein MJ. “Using Social Media for Social Comparison and Feedback-Seeking: Gender and Popularity Moderate Associations with Depressive Symptoms.” Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, vol. 43, no. 8, 2015, pp. 1427–1438., doi:10.1007/s10802-015-0020-0.
This scholarly article examines a study that researched how adolescents are affected by their use of technology. The study examined a variety of factors such as depressive symptoms, popularity, need for attention, and frequency of use. The key point in the results that I found interesting is that “technology-based social comparison and feedback-seeking were associated with depressive symptoms.” It is noted that the issue is very nuanced, but that it is somewhat clear that social comparison and seeking feedback can lead to depressive symptoms.
Webber, Rebecca. “The Comparison Trap.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, www.psychologytoday.com/us/articles/201711/the-comparison-trap.
This article discusses how damaging comparison can be for a person’s mental health, and also how much easier it is to compare through the social media lens. It is explained that since social media offers more information in a shorter period of time, people can be overwhelmed by comparative thoughts that can be damaging. It is noted that comparison can lead to motivation but often is outweighed by how self-conscious one can become.
Education Leads to Prevention
Bloomfield, Michael. “We Must Keep Fighting to Eliminate Mental Health Stigma.” MQ, 28 June 2017, www.mqmentalhealth.org/posts/great-stigma-still-exists-but-research-can-help-end-it.
In this article, Dr. Michael Bloomfield argues that although society has come a long way in eliminating the stigma around mental health, there is still a lot more we can do. He discusses how important it is that we do not settle for the progress we have made as a society, but instead continue to keep moving forward and eliminate the stigma.
Vally, Zahir. “Mental Health Stigma Continues to Impede Help‐Seeking and Self‐Care Efforts among Trainees in Mental Health Professions.” Wiley Online Library, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd (10.1111), 17 May 2018, onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/ppc.12294?sid=worldcat.org.
This scholarly article describes how the mental health stigma has even pervaded into the mental health profession itself since many graduate students seeking degrees in this do not have the resources to attain help themselves. It explains that many times, the mental health stigma prevented mental health professionals from being able to share their own struggles. These findings are representative of the fact that the mental health stigma does make people feel shame for coming forward.