Social Media Reflection

When people think of addictions, usually, drugs and chemical substances come to mind. A frequent trend observed in today’s age is not being able to go anywhere without one’s digital device and being addicted to that device, especially one’s cell phone. Adopting a cell phone separation anxiety, is a type of behavioral addiction that is seen more and more today. On average, people are spending about three hours on their phones each day. Alter states, “‘Behavioral addictions are really widespread now...risen with the adoption of newer more addictive social networking platforms, tablets and smartphones’” (Dreifus). As new technologies that cater to people’s wants increase, addiction to these technologies will increase as well. People become so attached to their phones that they will perhaps get distracted from their current situation. In the article “Hooked On Our Smartphones”, the author Jane E. Brody talked about how sometimes commuters or drivers put themselves in a dangerous position when they pay more attention to their phone instead of what surrounds them. The almost

That feeling of when one has momentarily misplaced their smartphone creates a sense of panic that can only be compared to withdrawal symptoms of someone without the source of their addiction. Richtel brings up an interesting correlation between the decline of drug use in teenagers and the rise of using smartphones becoming the status quo. This question is something that is entirely probable when the thought of behavioral addiction comes into play. Social psychologist Adam Alter who was interviewed by Claudia Dreifus in her article, describes addiction as “something you enjoy doing in the short term, that undermines your well-being in the long term — but that you do compulsively anyway”. Smartphones are something that most people use as a way of passing the time or for procrastination. This dependency is built over time with the smartphone; for example, while 30 minutes scrolling through Instagram occasionally seems harmless, it becomes habitual when this is the thing you reach for every time you have a free minute or two. Slowly we as a society, and most especially teenagers who have only known this their entire lives, have become dependent on the convenience of

“…are symptoms of how technology captures our attention and disrupts our connections” (Goleman 5). The more people are on their phones, the smaller the opportunity is to look someone in the eyes and have a human moment—to talk, to share, to comfort. Living in Seattle, I’ve used public transportation plenty of times and in all those times, I’ve noticed no one is looking at one another or outside—everyone is glued to their own phones. Go into a crowded room full of people—regardless of age—and the majority will be on their phones instead of communicating with one another. “You know it’s not right to check your phone when you’re with someone, but it’s addictive” (Goleman 8). While some may see nothing wrong in constantly checking your phone, the majority recognize it is an issue, but decide to overlook it. The ability people have in quickly overlooking a major issue, despite age or gender, proves the level of addiction towards our technological

It was only when I had no access to social media that I realized how often I turn to it. While attempting to study, I reached for my phone to check for notifications automatically, almost like natural reflex, every 5 minutes. I would describe it as torturous for me to not be able to access Internet browsers even when I am on my laptop, to resist the temptation and to go against my habits. Although I knew that it was going to be a difficult task for me and planned ahead of time to make sure I had a friend by my side during those 24 hours, it was still extremely difficult, especially when my friend still gets access to the Internet and would occasionally text and check

I have a little test for you, try to go without your phone for one hour of a time where you have nothing. Think about what happens in that time, is there an urge to check Snapchat? Do you need to see and like your friends Instagram post? Why is it so hard for us to leave a phone?

Social media is now part of our daily lives. We seem to have become attached to our devices and have made it part of our daily routine to use them. In my life, social media didn’t really affect me. I used to live in a wifi-free home, meaning that I didn’t have access to the internet. Both my mother and my father believe that internet is useless and kills your brain cells. Later they saw that I started to get lots of internet-required homework so they decided to install a wifi box at home. To be honest, I get very distracted now that I have internet at home. I don’t get things done as fast as I used to and I don’t use any of my time efficiently. Sometimes, after being on social media and watching cat videos for too long, I feel like I have no motivation to do anything. Now, I am more attached to my phone, but that will change.

In this day and age it's all too common to see a group of friends out to drinks, brunch, or what have you and see them all furiously scrolling or typing away on their phones. And as pathetic as it is, we can't help it. Being constantly plugged in and available has become second nature. Even when we aren't ignoring our friends in favor of Blake Lively's Instagram, we're seemingly always in touch with technology.

My essential goal in the beginning of this course was to present a better image of who I really am on my social media profiles and to reflect my in-person persona online. Compared to before this class started and to how far I have come, I would absolutely claim that I have been successful in presenting a better representation of my in-person self on my social media sites. When I post a picture on Facebook or upload an image to Instagram I choose not to edit the picture beforehand. In the past, I would brighten any image, add a filter, change the contrast, and make myself look tanner, and so on because I thought that altering the picture would make myself appear prettier. However, changing and editing the pictures reflects an image that does not truly represent who I am in-person. The true goal for everyone should be to achieve an image that reflects the most accurate representation of the in-person self and online version, reaching a parallel.

In the article “Digital Dependence”, the reporter Kelly Wallace discusses how half of teens and young adults think that they may be addicted to their smartphones. First, the author explores how more than 90% of American adults have their cell phones on them 24/7 and 29% say they could not live without them. The reading also includes that social media is a big factor in the addiction for teens. Teenagers said the main reason for they’re on their phones is because of Facebook or Instagram. In addition, Wallace explains that 71% of teens are on more than one social networking site, but studies show that social media can sometimes not be great for self-esteem, and teens actually feel worse when they’re on their phones. Moreover, the author writes

Most people that own a smartphone have admitted that they are addicted to their Cellular devices. In fact, about seventy-one percent of adults use facebook at least occasionally furthermore, forty-one percent of the users check facebook twice a day. About one thousand one hundred teens and adults check their smartphones, thirty-five checked their phones many times a day without having any external alerts. Not to mention, most teens use some type of social media app through the day. Whatever the social media app may be they have became so popular that they are a social norm.

I started using a Tumblr for my Social Media class. When I first started using Tumblr, I could tell that it was a much different platform than Facebook. The things I would post would just not go over well with my family and friends who would just believe what they would see on television. I've had bad experiences on Facebook for posting just about everything, but that was a while back. They took quite an offense to some of the things I would post about that are going on in not only America but on a global level. Let's begin with my experiences and expectations with Tumblr first.

I had never really known or thought how it would feel to be constantly harassed by security or people at the airport, I had heard so many stories about how people were attacked because of how they were dressed, their race, sex or religion. These stories were starting to gain public attention through the use of social media, most attacks has been usually videoed and posted online. Going through YouTube, a video was in the recommendation section titled; ' The Muslim on the airplane'. I thought this topic was interesting because I had never seen any person openly talking about their experience after an attack.

In the start of my day I usually check social media, text or news while I am on my way to class in the morning. This time I did not. As I went from class to class I was fine and had no urge to get on my phone, a computer or anything like that. The difficult part came when I was done with my classes for the day and had nothing to do. Of course, when I am bored I get on my phone or watch Netflix in my room. It was difficult for me not to be tempted to get on my phone, but I fought the urge and decided to use my time

As I created my media campaign, I focused on three concepts from social cognition: cognitive dissonance, object appraisal function, and message effect. I was not only interested in how my audience would perceive my message, but also, in how my own perceptions shape my actions and beliefs in relationship to environmentally friendly behaviors. Initially, I thought about my childhood and growing up and the messages about the environment my own parents taught me. Because I grew up on a farm, we were consumed with wasting as little as possible so that our family business would continue to flourish and support us.

Symptoms of this dependence include anxiety when away from the device, social media addiction due to ease of access, and sedentary behaviors (Lepp et al., 2014). This excessive use is extremely prevalent in the college scene due to how much hinges on their devices. Social media, school, communicating and entertainment all hinge on the smartphone which in turn promotes its use creating a cycle that leads to the addiction that most students are oblivious about. This device has a plethora of effects that range from a decrease in quality academic performance to a complete disatisfaction with life (Lepp et al., 2015). Can this behavior be able to be controlled or stopped using the right interventions? The following text will explore the symptoms and effects of high smartphone usage amongst college students, and see what intervention proves to be the most effective in solving this social issue.