By Jazmine Ramirez
Technology has increased in businesses, and social media has become popular. Social media and media, in general, have become so popular in the last decade. Businesses have gained popularity because of social media. People have jobs because of social media. Your local news outlets and your favorite celebrities are on social media. There are an estimated 5.6 people in the entire world who use social media. There are a little more than 8 billion people in this world. You can’t have social media as a baby, which makes up for the 3 billion people who aren’t on social media. Everyone uses the media. But how does everyone use social media? Social media has nearly affected almost every teenager, child, or adult. They are linked to effects such as depression and anxiety, low self-esteem, low body image, etc.
On September 6, I spoke to three students at Chestnut Hill College and tried to get an understanding of users of social media, all being young adults. Two questions circle the surface of how many people are affected by social media. Overall, social media is where people get news, follow their friends, and catch up with everyone around them. Even with all the positives and many great things about it, there can be lots of bad. Harmful in the way that people’s mental health is affected. Social media is not all bad. It can truly be excellent; it is just how you carry it within yourself.
Do you think social media has affected you in any way in terms of mental health?
I think social media has affected me both positively and negatively. Social media causes a lot of problems because of things people post and the stress it can put on people but it is also a way to connect to your friends and family. You can speak to them and stay connected even when apart.
Devin Warner, freshman, a forensic chemistry major
Yes I think mental health has affected me in both negative and positive ways. The negative side is a lot of comparing to other people, which can make me feel bad and have a major effect on my mental health. The positive side is discovering new things that I haven’t heard or seen before, which brings me a lot of joy and even new hobbies.
Abaigaile Alt-Ambriz, junior chemistry major
I think social media has impacted me negatively due to the constant pressure to keep up with trends and look a certain way and eventually it just becomes impossible without abusing drugs or other dangerous practices.
Erin McCarthy, junior exercise science major
Personally, I think social media has affected me negatively, especially in the past few years. I noticed I compare myself and my journey to others I see on social media when I never really did that before. However, one can never tell the full story through social media, and I had to learn that the hard way. I find myself in a better mindset when I am not on it as much.
Amaris Guzman, senior business major
To answer your first question I think that social media affects people in a negative way. To be honest, I think social media, ultimately at the end of the day, is a distraction to everyone. Don’t get me wrong, you know it gets the word out in terms of news in the media. It is great for promotion and great for business, but if you know if you’re a customer or you’re not an influencer content creator, it can be a distraction. Having multiple social media platforms is ten times more attractive than it was, say, when it first came out in the 2000s.
Matt Velez, senior media and communication major
Do you think it has affected the world as a whole?
As a whole social media mainly has a negative effect. It starts a lot of problems and people post things they shouldn’t have, and it never goes away. In this society, if you say the wrong thing, people can turn on you so quick, especially if you are popular or famous.
Devin Warner
I think, as a whole, it has a more negative effect for the same reasons as most people compare themselves to everyone on the internet. It’s normal to compare your looks and personality, but for some people, it’s hard to get out of that headspace . I think it is also hard to see influencers who are making a lot of money and being able to do a bunch of cool stuff like traveling and receiving free stuff and wondering why you aren’t in the same place as them. Being on social media for hours can be draining, and it’s hard to get off your phone and take a break.
Abaigaile Alt-Ambriz
Overall, it is negative for the population because people are constantly at risk of being filmed or having their words taken out of context and clipped by other people wanting to make them look bad.
Erin McCarthy
I think it has affected the world as a whole more so negatively than positively. Many, not all, tend to use it as a tool to mask what is true, and something that was supposed to be an entertaining and positively used concept was taken and now spreads too much false information and is greatly misused.
Amaris Guzman
It has affected the world, and a negative aspect again, like my last point, is just highly distracting. You can look at your screen time on your phone and how long you’re on there, and I guarantee you most of it is social media. So, like I said, I think it’s a distraction. If I think about this positively, it spreads awareness and things give some for people to do. It makes people laugh and cry, But you have to pick your poison there, whichever you choose. In my opinion, it’s an extreme practice of discipline in terms of how long you want to be on social media. When I wake up in the morning, I want to Instagram reels, and you keep watching, then you realize I have been on there for too long. I need help to succeed. Yes, it’s a huge distraction., I can also bring up the point of texting while driving or looking at your phone while driving. I think the problem has two sides, but I’m leaning more towards the negative aspect.
Matt Velez
