Addiction Social Media Addiction

Social media can be very addicting, and in some instances can cause isolation. Isolation is a big issue when it comes to social media use because in order for a person to become isolated addiction has to occur; when addiction occurs it causes a person to lose connection with the real world and the people in it. Many people use social media as a distraction when unoccupied, but can also be the cause of behavior change in children when exposed to social media and other dangerous websites. An example, is cyberbullying, which can cause an adolescent or a person of any age to commit suicide, and can also cause a person to create emotional and physical problems.

Firstly, being on the phone and social media for a long time can cause several symptoms of mental health. Especially when the present day, social media plays an important role as part of life, and a day without social networking seems to be impossible for some people. The harmful effects that social networking brings to human such as a change in the brain and the symptoms of addiction. According to the article Teen: This is how social media affects your brain by Susie East, it states:

First, social media, especially Facebook, are very addicted. People would say drug or alcohol is more addicted than social media or social media addiction is not big problems, but it is not true. There is a report of the social media addiction by University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business. A team from the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business recently conducted an experiment involving 205 people in Wurtzburg, Germany to analyze the addictive properties of social media and other devices. Participants in the week-long study were polled via BlackBerry smartphones seven times per day and asked to report when they experienced a desire within the past 30

Andreassen, Pallesen, Griffiths (2015) argues the implications of social media on a person(s), being addictive habits which affect self-esteem and moods. They did a study proving over 23,500 participants (Andreassen et al. 2015) showed addictive behaviour; of which it was most associated with

Addictions may seem like simple pleasures at first. Unfortunately, that's the trap with any addiction. It starts out at a pleasurable interest. Gradually, it can turn into something that's life-altering and all-consuming. Not only can it alter your own life, it can ruin your family life. When it comes to addiction, most people think about the most popular ones like drug and alcohol addictions. However, there are many addictions that fly under the radar.

To begin, it is proven that social media makes people feel more depressed. For example, people tend to check their social media websites when bored. This boredom soon becomes sadness. As they look through their social media site, they realize that everyone else is having more fun. They notice people are out at dinners, parties, etc, whereas you were not invited to any of these occasions. This makes you quickly ask yourself, “Why am I not having as much fun as them?” As you ponder this question, it essentially makes you feel—lonely and unloved.

In his article, Is Facebook Making Us Lonely, by Stephen Marche; he discusses the impact that social media has on humans today. He states, "We live in an accelerating contradiction: the more connected we become, the lonelier we are," (Marche). Therefore, he believes despite the escalation in social media, the more of it, the more likely we are to become lonely. Furthemore, the reason people became so attached to Facebook was due to the fact that it arrived at the right time; people have become accustomed to social media. He also makes claims about the negative aspects of social media, and how it impacts people psychologically and socially. To support his thesis he provides various types of evidence: facts, statistics, and expert opinions.

Although technology can help us express ourselves and stay connected with others, this doesn’t mean we have to use it all the time, and have it be all we ever do, and become addicted. Social media allows us to stay in contact with and maintain long distance relationships, or if you just want to text a friend about plans over the weekend or on a break(Doc 2). But we can use this to create more opportunities of face to face interaction rather than mindlessly scrolling through unimportant feed. Statistics show that our

Irena Ceranic, the author of the web article Social Media Addiction a Growing Concern, has utilised quotes, anecdotes and statistics to convey the author’s argument that social media is becoming an addiction. “… If a teenager spends long periods of time on the computer… that’s going to interfere with things like their real-time social life, they get fat… and it can interfere with their relationship with their parents, it becomes a source of conflict,” mentioned Perth psychologist Tony White. By bringing up the negative impacts for both the addict and their family, Ceranic has heightened concern for the parents with adolescent children who are obsessed with technology. To reach out to the adolescents who may fear they are becoming addicted to

In the article “Constant Social Media and Teens’ Mental Health” Alan Mozes theorizes that ninety percent of teens all around the world use social media. Meaning that this could be affecting their mental health. Adolescents are now vulnerable to depression, anxiety, and sleep deprivation due to social media use, says psychology administrator, Heather Cleland Woods. The article asserts that 467 people were asked about their social media use, what times of the day they use it, and the pressure they feel when they can not respond to a message. The tests show that those who were more involved and somewhat addicted to social media have the greater chance of depression, anxiety, and poor sleep. This test refutes that cutting the use of social media

Using social media disturbs make deep relationship with others. When they are using social media we do not need to move a lot. It is okay just to stay. We do not need to active a lot. As a result, it leads naturally mental and physical disorders.

Social media is extremely addictive as it provides immediate and satisfying rewards (through the release of hormones) with very little effort. Your brain automatically begins to crave it more and more as you desire these chemical stimulations. Sounds like a drug right? Some studies even show that around 5%-10% of users find it difficult to control the amount of time they spent online and literally cannot log off. So although social media stimulates our brain and sends chemicals that make us feel great - it’s harmful to our real life relationships and distances us from the connections we have around us, often times becoming a distraction to young people which can deter them from their schoolwork and affect their ability to interact with people face to face.

The most genuine complication of social media is addiction. A reporter on Salem health characterized that text messaging is no longer the biggest teenage obsession, and enormous phone bills from lengthy phone calls are no longer the biggest doubts for parents. These teenage addictions still remain, but in our generation and in analogy to the Facebook mania, it’s quite insignificant. Facebook addiction is advised to be a disorder driven by a craving. Not being able to access Facebook creates anxiety among fanatics. It is one of the most prominent social networking sites and has over one billion users without exception. People detach themselves from family and friends. Further symptoms of Facebook addiction have been related with needy sleep patterns. Researchers have also attempted to evaluate certain personality traits to the obsession. Being in touch with friends and family might clarify the logic why people are unreasonably obsessed.

In today’s society almost every individual has some type of social media, whether it is Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, or Twitter, People have accustomed to utilizing these types of social media and it has become part of their life and daily use. According to the essay “Students Addicted to Social Media” by the International Center for Media and Public Agenda, the study from the University of Maryland claims “American college students today are addicted to media” (Signs of Life in the USA 403). The university discovered that when these students are restricted from using media it is similar in terms of drug and alcohol addictions. During the study that the university conducted, students discuss how boring it is without media and how it gives them anxiety about not receiving information through social media. Other students claimed that texting and IM'ing gives them comfort and if they do not have these items then they feel alone and isolated from the world ( Signs of Life in the USA 404). Students are not the only ones who have an addiction of media but also parents and non-students. However, the International Center is accurate in some aspects and the responses students gave are very relatable which some people can agree with.

There is not a clear stated definition of digital addiction however Shaw and Black (2008) characterize Internet addiction by excessive or poorly preoccupations, urges or behaviours regarding computer use and internet access that lead to impairment or distress. However as the term addict is a strong description DA is seen as a general misuse of the internet in various forms, as no formal definition exists the author sees the disorder as problematic computer usage resulting in negative consequences. According to Young et al DA is a broad term covering a wide variety of behaviours and impulse control problems. K.Young (1999) also categorised DA into five subtypes of DA, they are cybersexual addiction, cyberrelationship addiction; net compulsion (e.g. gambling or shopping on the internet); information overload (e.g. compulsive database searching); and computer addiction (excessive game-playing). This project highlights social network addiction which falls into the category of cyberrelationship addiction but also contemplates all other types.