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Introduction
Over the past decade, social media has become an integral part of modern society, surrounding people in many aspects of their life, such as work, education, dating, and others. While some claim that there are undeniable benefits to social media, there are also opinions and evidence that it can be destructive and harmful in many cases. A large number of arguments can be presented to support the negative influence of social media, and several of them will be addressed in this paper. The present essay will therefore argue that most often, social media platforms have a negative impact, as they set unrealistic appearance-related standards and can cause addiction.
Impact on Body Image and Self-esteem
The first reason that can be considered a negative impact state that social media can often cause unrealistic expectations in regard to success, ones body image, appearance, and self-esteem. Platforms such as Facebook and Instagram constantly expose users to various types of appearance-related content. This can be particularly harmful to teenagers and young adults who are insecure about their bodies, leading to different eating and behavior disorders, such as anorexia nervosa and binge-eating disorders. Studies have shown that social media platforms, visual ones, in particular, are dysfunctional for body image (Vandenbosch, et al.). Therefore, one of the major negative impacts of social media is the fact that they can set unrealistic and unnecessary beauty and success standards, which harms peoples health and self-esteem.
Social Media Addiction
The second reason is the fact that the majority of social media platforms are designed in a way that makes their users addicted. Resources like Instagram and Twitter can present an endless amount of content, making it extremely difficult for many people to stop scrolling. Unarguably, many individuals have had days when they spent hours scrolling aimlessly through the news feed only to realize some time later that they lost an entire afternoon, evening, of the whole day doing that. This addictive nature of social media is based on the production of dopamine, or the pleasure hormone (Hou, et al.). When a person finds something interesting or attractive on social media, they want more, and keep scrolling through the photos, videos, or posts that are ultimately useless for them. Unable to find something more and more enjoyable, they simply lose their free time and feel mentally exhausted.
Benefits of Social Media
However, the opposing point of view argues that there are also important benefits to the use of social media. For example, it has been suggested that adolescents who experience issues such as insecurity and low self-esteem can improve their communication skills using various platforms, as it will be easier for them to communicate online (Rajamohan et al.). In addition, studies have suggested that the use of social media can enhance the ability to show empathy (Rajamohan et al.). As users feel free to express themselves on the Internet, they learn to value other peoples opinions and feelings. Therefore, as argued by the opposing views, healthy use of various platforms should be encouraged and maintained.
Conclusion
It can be concluded that the use of social media can have both benefits and risks in relation to peoples health, self-image, and communication skills. While the opposing views state that platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter can enhance empathy and facilitate communication, this essay argues that negative effects prevail. Some of the most serious ones include the fact that social media often cause addiction and set unrealistic standards and expectations in relation to body image, appearance, and success.
Works Cited
Hou, Y., et al. Social media addiction: Its impact, mediation, and intervention. Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace, vol. 13, no. 1, 2019, doi:10.5817/cp2019-1-4.
Rajamohan, Santhiny, et al. The hazards and benefits of social media use in adolescents. Nursing, vol. 49, no. 11, 2019, pp. 52-56.
Vandenbosch, Laura, et al. Social media and body image: Recent trends and future directions. Current Opinion in Psychology, vol. 45, 2022, p. 101289.
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