The following essay is based on the negative impact of social media overuse in adolescents.
The use of social media has become very common among teenagers and adolescents where more than 90% of teenagers use social media in a day. Social media use involves interacting this implies that one part of the brain that plays a great role in the interactions involved is the social brain. According to Sarah Blakemore, the social brain is the network of various parts of the brain that enable adolescents to understand other individuals that they interact with. However, this process is associated with a number of risks that result in negative outcomes on the users. This paper examines some of the effects that are associated with social media overuse among adolescents.
Various social media platforms that exist such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat allow users to create accounts and to establish a network of friends with who they interact with or simply follow up on their lives. These platforms have also created a platform where individuals can share various incidences about their loves by uploading pictures and videos. Therefore, social media have gained immense influence among young people particularly teens and adolescents who are always keeping track of their friends’ timelines on the platforms (Ehmke, 2016). This has generated several adverse effects on users.
One of the effects is that social media allows social comparison among adolescents which has adversely affected their mental health. Most individuals normally spend a lot of time observing the lives of their friends and peers on social media. This creates an illusion in the mind of the users where they start feeling discontented with their lives (Ehmke, 2016). For instance, most teenagers tend to post their accomplishments and the good things that are happening in their life which may make others feel that they are not doing well in their lives. When this happens, an individual’s mental health is greatly affected and it may also cause an individual to perceive themselves as failures. By comparing oneself with others, it results in low self-esteem and depression. An individual may develop the perception that they are not as good as their peers which eventually leads to low self-esteem. Others end up getting depressed because they cannot meet the standards that their peers maintain.
The other negative associated with the use of social media is that it also causes the users to develop behaviors that are risky and wrong. The social media exposes the users to all sorts of friends and some usually influence others to embrace behaviors or cultures that are not good. For instance, social media is full of people that usually picture the use of various drugs such as alcohol and marijuana as a cool thing among teenagers. Most individuals actually end up embracing such behaviors due to the influence of their peers on social media (Durbin, 2018). Therefore, various behaviors and tendencies that are displayed among teenagers can be attributed to the influence on social media.
The overuse of social media among adolescents also robs them of their quality time which could be used in other meaningful ways. For instance, it limits the ability of the individual in engaging in more meaningful relationships that could help to improve their lives. Also, other individuals also develop an addiction to social media which is associated with other behaviors that are undesirable such as anxiety and trauma. The pattern that is created in an individual who is addicted to social media is similar to that of other addictions which affect the wellbeing of the individual. Therefore, parents, caregivers, and educators should ensure that they guide their children right from an early age and instill in them proper values in relation to the use of social media.
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References
Durbin, J. (2018, June 8). Social Media and Adolescents: What Are the Health Risks? Clinical Advisor. https://www.clinicaladvisor.com/home/features/social-media-and-adolescents-what-are-the-health-risks/
Ehmke, R. (2016, March 2). How Using Social Media Affects Teenagers. Child Mind Institute. https://childmind.org/article/how-using-social-media-affects-teenagers/
