Social Media Algorithms and Mental Health
Social media has become a staple of everyone’s life in modern times. While there are many very positive things about social media, there are also plenty of negative things about social media. One of the most negative aspects of social media is the fact that it has some negative effects on someone’s mental health. Further, the introduction of smartphones and other technology into everyone’s lives means that everyone is constantly interacting with their social media accounts and exposing themselves to some of the detrimental effects of the technology. In the following article, Counseling of Southwest Florida and our Florida addiction therapy explores the relationship between social media algorithms and mental health.
How Does Social Media Affect Children’s Mental Health?
Social media is known to affect children and adults negatively when it comes to their mental health. The fact of the matter is that social media platforms constantly tweak the algorithm of their program to make them as engaging and addicting as possible. This is done by registering what the user finds most interesting and making sure that their feed is personalized. In other words, social media platforms are in the business of making their applications as addicting as possible so that children and adults alike spend as much screen time on them as possible. Our Fort Myers trauma therapy and Sarasota grief counseling professionals would like to point out that this leads to the first negative impact on someone’s mental health – which is developing an addiction. Social media addiction is an indicator that someone could have a hard time not interacting with the stimulus that is causing them harm in the long run.
Other than developing an addiction, there are many other detrimental effects of social media. One of the most pertinent involves developing low self-esteem and depression, especially among female users. Further, social media could lead to anxious thoughts and antisocial behavior. In other words, one of the links between social media algorithms and mental health is of getting people addicted and causing other mental health issues during their use.
What is the Worst Social Media for Mental Health?
When it comes to deciding which social media is worse for mental health, it is important to realize that each platform will come with its unique advantages and disadvantages. For example, Instagram and YouTube have different functions and will impact someone’s mental health differently. However, since Instagram is the most popular social media platform, it could be seen as the worst one. Also, since this social media platform is based on showing off lives and high beauty standards, it could negatively impact someone’s mental health.
Does Deleting Social Media Improve Mental Health?
Yes, deleting social media does improve mental health since they will not be exposed to the negative impact of the platform.
More About Counseling of Southwest Florida
Aside from teaching our readers about social media algorithms and mental health, we are a service that is dedicated to helping them in a variety of different ways. We offer plenty of services, including the following:
- Therapy for Anger Management
- Grief and loss therapy training
- Interventions through the Batterer Intervention Program
- Group therapy for Bipolar disorder
- Marriage counseling in Florida
- And much more
Contact us today to learn more.
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Casey is the founder and CEO of Portner Counseling Group (PCG), a counseling center in the Fort Lauderdale area, which specializes with issues related to drug and alcohol use. Casey has completed focused course work on the physiological aspects of drug addiction and human psychology, as well as received extensive training on the treatment of co-occurring disorders.