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The mass adoption of social media has made it not only a mode of communication but has forced its users to examine their own identities, relationship with others, and their way of life.
This is even more pertinent for younger users, as elaborated in a paper created by researchers from the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, as well as the Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behaviour.
This recent study, published in Nature Communications, details a correlation between negative life satisfaction and social media use in younger adolescents.
The paper showed that teenagers were overall most negatively affected by extreme social media use.
The team analysed the UK Understanding Society household panel survey, which involved 72,287 participants between 10-80 years of age, that were surveyed seven times each between 2011 and 2018. Respondents were asked how much time they spent on social media on a typical day, and how satisfied they are with their lives.
Focusing on the younger half of the dataset, researchers wanted to find the relationship between social media use and life satisfaction in adolescents. Older adolescents (16-21 years) who did not use or had extremely high daily social media use reported lower life satisfaction. This result supported the ‘Goldilocks hypothesis’, which claims that too much or too little screen time leads to lesser well-being. This pattern was not observed in younger adolescents (10-15 years), as a more linear association existed – higher social media use often equated to a more negative self-rating of life satisfaction.
Another phenomenon they aimed to understand is how increased social media affects these individuals over a span of time. Females aged 11-13 who increased social media use over one year reported lower life satisfaction. This is also true of boys aged 14-15. Researchers speculate that maturation is a factor, which occurs earlier in females than in males.
At age 19, there was little difference between the sexes in terms of heightened social media use and lower satisfaction levels, though the same negative trend was found. This may be due to the fact that puberty may not be as big of an influence at this age, though near-universal experiences such as moving away from home and social network disruption occur. However, the researchers conclude that this cannot be directly tested using the dataset, and requires more targeted research. As the variables are self-reported, the data is subjective, and may not be the most accurate.
Though the research results seemed to reveal strong trends, the many social and environmental influences in an individual’s life, as well as the different types of social media use make it difficult to predict those who are most vulnerable to these negative effects. The researchers have called for further studies to probe this phenomenon.
Social media can be extremely impactful on younger adolescents during their period of maturation. As this time in their lives is a great period of cognitive, physical, and social growth, increased exposure to the online world may bring negative consequences.
Immersing oneself in a bubble – a makeshift reality – of content users are interested in can spur addiction, and encourage the exact opposite of what the medium was meant for – socialisation. Content-rich apps such as YouTube and TikTok can cause extreme fixation as there is virtually no shortage of footage to consume. This preoccupation with the platform, in turn, can cause antisocial behaviour.
Individuals may also experience negative self-image due to the beauty standards that are heavily pushed upon them online by influencers and celebrities. This is especially true for influencers, who are posed as ‘regular’ individuals and are often younger, like their audiences. This illusion of attainability encourages comparison, making users feel like they could achieve similar status if only they were better, prettier, or worked harder.
This on a whole may affect brain development. Between the ages of 10-12, the brain alters and creates social rewards – the ‘happy hormone’ oxytocin and dopamine receptors multiply in the brain. This means that preteens are more sensitive to compliments and attention from others. This becomes more apparent when using social media.
In adults, the same process occurs, however, adults have more of a fixed sense of self and self-confidence, as well as a mature prefrontal cortex which helps regulate emotional responses to social rewards, thus making it much less harmful.
Social interactions on online platforms are more public and fixed – likes and comments show users how they feel about one’s content. Younger users are more likely to emphasise the importance of their metrics and seek validation from it, which on the whole creates a less satisfying life.
Many studies such as this have been conducted detailing the negative effects of social media on the human population, however, when moderately utilised, it can be quite beneficial.
The pandemic has made it difficult for face-to-face interaction, and social media allows individuals to have a direct line to loved ones and feel involved in their daily activities.
Additionally, individuals may feel able to express a facet of themselves online that they are not comfortable showing in real life and create connections with communities and individuals they would have otherwise not been exposed to.
Different forms of social media are also embedded into much of our daily processes, from school, work, and university to news and entertainment media.
As noted in the ‘Goldilocks hypothesis’ detailed in the study, both extreme deprivation and extreme use of social media are bound to spur negative effects on the user. Social media can be great in moderation.
As the older generations were not born into the age of the Internet and are generally not as addicted to social media as younger individuals are, they are less likely to suffer the negative consequences it may bring about. Though more digitally literate, there is a greater worry for growing adolescents who may be developmentally affected by these online platforms.
Regardless, it is essential to conduct more research into this and better regulations and safety features should be developed to limit the negative effects social media can have on its users – especially its younger, most vulnerable ones.
About the Author: Shadine Taufik
Shadine Taufik is a contributing Features writer with expertise in digital sociology and culture, philosophy of technology, and computational creativity.
