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Is Social Media Causing Childhood Depression? (bbc.com)
General practitioner Rangan Chatterjee says he has seen plenty of evidence of the link between mental ill-health in children and their use of social media. "One 16 year-old boy was referred to him after he self-harmed and ended up in A&E," reports BBC. Dr. Chatterjee was going to put him on anti-depressants, but instead worked with him to help wean him off social media. "He reported a significant improvement in his wellbeing and, after six months, I had a letter from his mother saying he was happier at school and integrated into the local community," says Dr. Chatterjee. That and similar cases have led him to question the role social media plays in the lives of young people. From the report: "Social media is having a negative impact on mental health," he said. "I do think it is a big problem and that we need some rules. How do we educate society to use technology so it helps us rather than harms us?" A 2017 study by The Royal Society of Public Health asked 1,500 young people aged 11-25 to track their moods while using the five most popular social media sites. It suggested Snapchat and Instagram were the most likely to inspire feelings of inadequacy and anxiety. YouTube had the most positive influence. Seven in 10 said Instagram made them feel worse about body image and half of 14-24-year-olds reported Instagram and Facebook exacerbated feelings of anxiety. Two-thirds said Facebook made cyber-bullying worse.
Consultant psychiatrist Louise Theodosiou says one of the clearest indications children are spending too long on their phones is their behavior during a session with a psychiatrist. "Two or three years ago, it was very unusual for a child to answer their phone or text during an appointment. But now it is common," said the Royal Manchester Children's Hospital doctor. She has seen a rise in cases where social media is a contributing factor in teenage depression, anxiety and other mental health issues. These problems are often complex and wide-ranging -- from excessive use of gaming or social media sites to feelings of inadequacy brought on by a constant bombardment of social media images of other people's lives, to cyber-bullying.
Consultant psychiatrist Louise Theodosiou says one of the clearest indications children are spending too long on their phones is their behavior during a session with a psychiatrist. "Two or three years ago, it was very unusual for a child to answer their phone or text during an appointment. But now it is common," said the Royal Manchester Children's Hospital doctor. She has seen a rise in cases where social media is a contributing factor in teenage depression, anxiety and other mental health issues. These problems are often complex and wide-ranging -- from excessive use of gaming or social media sites to feelings of inadequacy brought on by a constant bombardment of social media images of other people's lives, to cyber-bullying.
A few generations ago, 16 year olds lied to Army recruiters to be able to parachute into Nazi-occupied Western Europe during WWII.
Could you image all these youtube/emo/facebook kids doing that shit today?
You'd be hard-pressed to think of technologies available to a young child that would "help."
Keep your kids off of social media.
I'd vote for 10 more Trumps just to see you suffer.
You just described school, pre-internet. Possibly also, life.
When I was growing up, kids were just as shitty as they are now. Bullies were just as prevalent. Of course, kids who got bullied only had to deal with it while at school.
With social media, these asshole kids are able to stock their targets whenever they want. So nowadays the kids who get bullied don't get an escape from the mental bullying.
Of course I know a lot of people no this site do not believe that mental suffering is a real thing and people should just shut up and stop being snowflakes. Naturally, the people who think this way grew up in their middle class white suburbs without a single obstacle in their live.
While I was fortunate enough that I never had to deal with that stuff as a kid, I know a number of people who did. 25 years on, these people are... different than other people today.
I could easily see how social media could drive a person to depression. Constant pressure, constant negative imagery and the kid feels there is not escape. Remember... Kids can be super assholes.
If it's bad now, just wait until Facebook add their 'Dislike button'.
If you look at the "whole picture", you can see the pattern from infancy.
Child cries, gets attention (varied).
Boredom = video put on.
Teens plug into social media:
- instant "friends" that aren't really friends
- feedback on social activities
- suggestions for other interactions that are minimally inclusive on a physical level
- advertising bombardment
- tailored interest grouping that "fits" whatever whim they have (good or bad): If the comments stream doesn't completely match what they Want to hear, they filter the comments (mentally) to only see what brings them the attention they were seeking, which results in deepening whatever they were feeling in the first place.
It's all about being little attention junkies: Give them what they want and they're happy. The problem is, it's only a temporary hit, and they want more.
Because it wears off so fast, the cycle is rather steep and intense, with a serious downward spiral.
As many of us have seen, it's not the positive expressions that get the most attention, but the negative ones. After all, the "train-wreck watchers" want to see just how far the mess will spin out, and will even be there on the sidelines with more wrenches and grease to add to the situation. Good feelings and Warm Fuzzies are nice and all, but don't hold the collective interest like a good old fashioned emotional spinout that leads to a suicide attempt.
If teens want the negative attention, Heaven knows the internet has negative reinforcement in Spades available 24/7/365.
I just wish the same could truthfully be said for Positive attention.
We already know it's causing depression in pretty much every other group. It would be more newsworthy if it didn't cause depression in children.
I have no idea where you got that idea but nothing about social media prevents drug use including Alcohol.
Guns don't kill people; Physics kills people! - John Lithgow as Dick Solomon on Third Rock From The Sun
What's up is that child psychology, adult psychology and geriatric psychology are all distinct areas of research focus. You wouldn't expect a researcher who normally publishes papers on children to includes adults in his or her study.
The impact of Internet use on adult mental health hasn't been ignored. You just have to look at different studies. In fact there are journals devoted to it.
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