Instructions Our Central Question: Does the scientific evidence suggest that hypnosis is effective? If yes, for which conditions is it most effective? . Additional Questions for Consideration (optio

RUNNING HEAD: Facebook Use and Teen Mental Health

11

Understanding the Relationship Between Facebook Use and Teen Mental Health

[PSYC 200 Student]

University of Baltimore

The years of a teenager are critical in the direct development of a healthy adulthood. In this day in age, there are many stressors that teens have to face, often times virtually on their own, with little to no aid, such as social anxiety, the need to feel accepted, and even their own existence, or lack thereof. All throughout their years, teens will be searching for catharsis to fill this lack of self, and the advent of social networking sites (SNSs) like Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and Instagram act as a panacea for said woes. For years, teens and young adults flock to these sites, pouring tons of information onto them, both private and public, with little to no caution. These sites, at the end of the day, fill up a teen’s time, especially those yearning for their own identity, and have ingratiated themselves into daily life, for better and for worse.

For this demographic, SNSs are far too important to simply throw away at the site of danger. They allow teens who are socially anxious to communicate anonymously, giving them a confidence boost in themselves, as no face means no labels are attached to them for users elsewhere to criticize and mock. They allow teens to create a diary of sorts, where they can post updates, work, hobbies, or other things they like, provided they meet the safety standards outlined in the sites’ user agreements, such as no hate speech or no pornography that’s not labeled as “Not Safe for Work” (NSFW). Most importantly, SNSs allow users to communicate globally, allowing people to react and post comments about particular subjects, and for every click of the “Like” button is another boost to a young teen’s or young adult’s self-satisfaction. It’s little wonder then that, in spite of threats such as SNS addiction, cyberbullying, and hackings, teens to this day still freely and often times carelessly utilize these sites without a care in the world, and this lack of moderation is but one of the actions that ultimately lead to the rise of the negative effects of SNSs on teens.

The purpose of this literature review is to discuss both the positive and negative implications of the use of SNSs by teens and young adults. It will talk about the subjects of identity formation, cyberbullying, social media addiction, and the overall effects social media has placed on today’s population. By the review’s end, the reader should have an understanding of how and why cyberbullying occurs, what the dangers and benefits mean for the youth, and most importantly, understand why SNSs are here to stay in our lives.

As these sites gain traction among teens, so too does their necessity in daily life. They become a means for teens to stay informed of the outside world, in a fast paced time, where news is consumed no different from a bag of chips. In a study performed by Graham (2018), there was a somewhat negative relationship between the fear of missing out (FoMo) and life contentment, with results showing that teens who spend their days frantically searching for news on their social media timeline have a lower level of life contentment than those that do not check as often. The study also peered into the negative emotions when teens do not fulfill this urge, showing issues such as increased irritability, moodiness, increased social anxiety, and depression, among others. Ultimately, these feelings come back to hurt teens, many of whom do not even use sites like Twitter to connect with friends and other individuals from real life, but instead, as a means to prevent feeling isolated, which only fuels the negative emotions in the long run.

The heavy use of and reliance on social media by teens and young adults has made others wary about their overall health, and judging by recent evidence, it seems such concerns are justified. Judging from an experience sampling done by Kross et al. (2013) to determine how participants felt by the moment and their life contentedness, researchers found negative shifts in both categories, indicating that Facebook-their studied social network-might very well be undermining overall health as use continues. The study found that after merely two weeks, levels of life contentedness dropped within the 82 participants, many of whom reported feelings of loneliness and other isolating behaviors. This conclusion is supported by a cross-sectional study done by Meena, Mittal, and Solanki (2013), who, after conducting a study on 200 urban students to see whether or not social networks were being excessively used by teens and young adults, found that 25% of students had occasional problems while using social media, that is, they spent quite a bit of time merely searching on or simply running social networking sites, with more than 50% of students having used said sites for more than three years. Indeed, social media has garnered heavy use in but a span of about a decade, and by these reports, it seems to have way more adverse effects than simply directly speaking to others the old fashioned way.

With all this talk of loneliness, anxiety, and need to belong being heavily looked at in the relationship between social media use and teen health, what better way to go down the rabbit hole than to look at the worst case scenario linked to social networks?: teen suicide. As platforms like Facebook and Twitter continue to soar, so has its use to spread awareness to the growing dilemma of cyberbullying and ultimately suicide. An article published on the Tampa Bay Times recounts the suicide of Naika Venant, a 14 year old girl who committed suicide on Facebook Live, after being tossed from foster home to foster home, and being bullied, abandoned assaulted, and abused by her mother, who also went on the broadcast and encouraged her suicide (O’Donnell, 2017). This inhumane behavior seems to be all too common nowadays, as a study by Luxton, June, and Fairall (2012) examined just how prevalent cyberbullicide-suicides caused by cyberbullying, either by text, e-mail, or more often than not, SNSs like Instagram and MySpace-really is. Results from a survey given to approximately 2000 middle school children showed that victims of cyberbullying were almost twice as likely to attempt suicide than those who were not, and cyberbullying offenders were 1.5 times as likely to report having attempted suicide than children who were not offenders or victims of cyberbullying. We often talk about how these victims likely felt lonely or isolated prior to these attacks, yet few talk about the perpetrators’ emotions, unlike this study. After all, the often used saying, “misery loves company” would work very well in these scenarios. The offenders also likely felt lonely or isolated, or perhaps they were the “cool kid” and belittling others is how they built said reputation, thus creating peer pressure for them to continue disparage others. While it certainly is inexcusable for bullying of any kind to take place, it should not be looked at as a simple case of “hero vs. villain” we often ascribe to criminal cases like this. Cyberbullying and cyberbullicide is an epidemic, and like any epidemic, must be looked at with dire scrutiny, and with the earnest desire to lessen its prevalence, if not outright banish it from our lives altogether. Without the proper examination and means to eliminate it, such fates as that young girl will continue to be as common as breathing, an action fewer and fewer youths seem to be doing as this continues with little to no hope of stopping.

Now while the use of social media may seem completely dangerous for teens and young adults, not all is wrong , and in fact, there are a few positives social media has to offer, aside from a quick means of communication. As observed in a study by Drogos (2015), SNSs have given these folks a place where they feel they can freely express themselves, and create a name for themselves, an important feeling that must be explored by this demographic. There were two studies: Study 1 surveyed 227 teens that investigated how self-reported Facebook use related to self-concept, and Study 2 was a content analysis of actual Facebook profile of 204 of Study 1’s participants, as they observe and analyze Facebook behavior patterns. As per the results, both studies showed that adolescents who used Facebook more often, particularly those that actively use it more than other sites, have a more advanced identity than those who use it less often, consistent with the idea that it allows these individuals an effective space to work out their identities. In addition, Study 1 found that the relationship between time spent on Facebook and identity status was moderated by offline parent-teen communication, with more supportive parenting equating to stronger relationships with people. Most obvious in the findings was that the more positive reactions given to participants’ status, the higher their self-esteem. Ultimately, the research shows that teens simply need a safe, secure place to voice their opinions and find a place to form their identity, so that when they finally face the real world in but a few years time as adults, they will have a better understanding of who they are, if they are who they claim to be, and understand their desires and aspirations they wish to see realized in life.

All in all, SNSs are here to stay, and for better or worse, we need to stay informed about their use and what risks and benefits they pose for us. While they may harbor a place for us to belong, ease social anxiety, and allow us to connect with others, it’s also worth noting that these small benefits do little against the dangers they produce or enhance, such as cyberbullying, cyberbullicide, and the manipulation of our psychosocial health. As the days drone on, the world is becoming more interconnected, however, this means nothing since in effect, we cannot effectively communicate in person, let alone on the web, where potentially the entire world can freely observe and judge our words, thoughts, ideals, and identity. If we wish to make social media a safer place to traverse for the youth, we need to address these issues, but more than that, we need to combat them. Teens need to place cyberdefenses like firewalls and virtual private networks (VPSs) to block unwanted trespassers from hacking their profiles, and spreading hateful speech to them and others. We need to actually talk about and actively detect and treat bullying, not just online, but where it really starts: in person, at schools across the nation, and in the world. By the time that’s settled, teens can finally fit pieces of their puzzle, without the fear someone will swat way their progress and perhaps even their lives.

Discussion and Conclusion

References

Allen, K.-A., Ryan, T., Gray, D., McInereney, D., & Waters, L. (2014). Social Media Use and Social Connectedness in Adolescents: The Positives and the Potential Pitfalls. Australian Journal of Educational and Developmental Psychology, 31, 18–31. https://doi.org/10.1017/edp.2014.2

Drogos, K. L. (2016). The relationship between adolescent identity formation and social network site use. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Retrieved April 22, 2019, from ProQuest website: https://search.proquest.com/docview/1815114419/abstract/167885EEB92A4039PQ/1

Graham, L. H. (2018). Is Fear of Missing Out Instrumental in Understanding Health Outcomes Related to Social Media Use? American Journal of Medical Research, 5(1), 67–72. https://doi.org/10.22381/AJMR5120185

Kross, E., Verduyn, P., Demiralp, E., Park, J., Lee, D. S., Lin, N., … Ybarra, O. (2013). Facebook Use Predicts Declines in Subjective Well-Being in Young Adults. PLOS ONE, 8(8), e69841. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0069841

Luxton, D. D., June, J. D., & Fairall, J. M. (2012). Social Media and Suicide: A Public Health Perspective. American Journal of Public Health, 102(Suppl 2), S195–S200. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2011.300608

Meena, P. S., Mittal, P. K., & Solanki, R. K. (2012). Problematic use of social networking sites among urban school going teenagers. Industrial Psychiatry Journal, 21(2), 94. https://doi.org/10.4103/0972-6748.119589

O’Donnell, C. (2017, March 14). DCF: MOM MAY HAVE VIEWED TEEN’S SUICIDE; A report says she left a harmful comment during the livestream of the girl’s hanging. Tampa Bay Times (St. Petersburg, FL), p. 1. Retrieved from Opposing Viewpoints in Context.

Rothchild, N. (2018). Is Troublesome Facebook Use a Behavioral Addiction? American Journal of Medical Research, 5(1), 73–78.https://doi.org/10.22381/AJMR5120186

Top U.S. mobile social apps by users 2018 | Statistic. (n.d.). Retrieved April 22, 2019, from Statista website: https://www.statista.com/statistics/248074/most-popular-us-social-networking-apps-ranked-by-audience/