Social Media

Project Description

For this project I took a survery to see if I could be considered "addicted" to social media. I also did some research about social media usage as a whole and its effects on society.

Social Media Addiction Survey

The result of my survey was "Fairly Reliant". 

"You're fairly reliant on social media, but there are far worse culprits! Still, it's good to be reminded that UK adults spend an average of 8 hrs 41 mins on screens every day, and 4 hours of that on smartphone apps alone (mainly social media). That's about a third of each day checking apps. Do you need to rethink your social media habits and the amount of time you spend scrolling?" 

I feel that it would not hurt for me to reduce my screen time. I do not know my exact daily screen time, but most of the time I get on out of habit. I can easily find more productive things to do.

Social Media's Impact on Society

I think that social media has impacted society as a whole negatively due to irresponsible use. This could be in the form of overuse or the type of content consumed. A lot of the most popular people online are not good people, so in turn they influence many people negatively. Misinformation is also a big problem. However, the internet and social media offer many positives too. Connecting with people who have similar ideas and hobbies, learning new things, and staying in touch with friends and family are a few examples. When used responsibly social media can have a positive impact, but due to the way most people use it I believe the overall effect has been negative.

Lessons  Learned

I learned that I should reduce my social media usage so that I am no longer reliant on it. I use social media a similar amount to most people, but I think we can all agree we should use it less.

Sources

Auxier, B. a. (2021, April 7). Social Media Use in 2021. Retrieved from Pew Research Center: https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2021/04/07/social-media-use-in-2021/