Contemporary Issues Research Essay Cause/effect "Social media and mental health"

Thesis Statement

Topic Sentence

briefly introduce the issue and provide background.

"Research Article Measuring the Impact of Social Media on Young People's Mental Health: Development and Validation of the Social Media-Induced Tendency Scale"

Social media use has been linked to adverse health outcomes such as depression. To facilitate interventions, understanding the varied causes of depression is necessary. The authors developed a social media-induced depression tendency (SMIDT) scale for use with young people and aimed to validate it for young people in Nigeria. The study was conducted in three parts using an online survey (Google Forms) with purposive sampling targeting young people. Study 1 was an exploratory study that developed the SMIDT scale with 361 young people aged 16 to 26 years (mean age = 22:81). A concise measure of SMIDT was obtained. In study 2, confirmatory factor analysis was performed on the SMIDT with young people aged 17 to 25 years (mean age = 23:61). Construct, discriminant, and concurrent validities were established, and three factors were identified (sensitivity/attention seeking, worthlessness, and escapism/reality avoidance), which explained 55.87% of the variance. Study 3 tested the predictive validity of the scale. The results showed that the 15-item SMIDT scale had high internal consistency and satisfactory validity. The SMIDT scale can enable the assessment of factors associated with social media-induced depression tendency. The three factors identified in the scale provide insight into the factors contributing to depression associated with social media use. The SMIDT scale has the potential to help identify at-risk individuals and in-developing interventions to prevent or reduce social media-induced depression tendencies. However, this study only focused on young people in Nigeria. Additional studies using the SMIDT scale are required to assess its generalizability and applicability in evaluating other factors, such as quality of life among young people. Moreover, while social media use has been associated with adverse health outcomes, it is crucial to recognize that it can also positively affect mental health. Further research is necessary to explore the complex relationships between social media use and mental health outcomes. 1. Introduction Social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok are extremely popular among young people [1] and are the most popular ways to communicate with friends and family for many reasons. It is convenient and easy to reach many friends and family members simultaneously, regardless of location or distance [2]. It is also free to use, which makes it accessible to a wide range of people [3]. It has become common to check social media regularly [4]. Young people's excessive use of social media networks may have reduced face-to-face or real-life social interactions [5, 6]. Additionally, regular exposure to idealized and unrealistic depictions of emotions, lies, and connections on social Hindawi Depression Research and Treatment Volume 2023, Article ID 8677521, 11 pages https://doi.org/10.1155/2023/8677521 media can make individuals feel inferior and isolated compared to their peers [7]. This is because they believe that others live happier and more connected lives, making them feel socially disadvantaged. Young people's use of social media has raised concerns about its impact on their mental health, particularly their life satisfaction and depressive symptoms [8, 9]. Earlier research (e.g., [10], [11]) proposed active-passive social media use, indicating that active (sending messages privately or broadcasting) was more associated with well-being, while passive (browsing other people's posts and profiles) was more associated with illbeing. However, a scoping review by Valkenburg et al. [12] showed that such dichotomy was difficult to establish as both can elicit positive and negative effects. Depression significantly impacts health and can increase morbidity and mortality [13, 14]. The health effects of this mental disorder are becoming more pronounced, with the World Health Organization [15] reporting that depression is one of the major contributors to disability-adjusted life years globally. This is partly because depression often affects people in their prime years of early adulthood [15]. The cause of depression includes complex interaction between social, psychological, and biological factors [15]. The world is evolving in how we interact and seek connection and support from each other through social media. Unfortunately, this has also created opportunities for misinformation and high expectations from themselves that can be overstated, leaving young people feeling isolated and aiming for unattainable goals [5, 16], which could result in the term social media-induced depression tendency (SMIDT). SMIDT is the tendency to experience depression due to problematic social media usage. This high-frequency usage has been linked to adverse health-related outcomes, for example, depression, anxiety, and suicide (e.g., [17]). The increasing reduction in in-person social interaction has reduced emotional closeness among young people. The use of social media gives a faulty reflection of reality, where people could be lonely and feel miserable yet portray healthy and lively outlooks [18]. The constant display of pictureperfect lifestyles seen on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram has been shown to be toxic for young people as they struggle with body image, eating disorders, anxiety, and depression [19]. The increasing negative influence of social media on people's lives, especially depressive symptoms [20, 21], has necessitated this investigation. People tend to be active or passive in social comparison in social media use. This is where people compare themselves (how they look and perceive "better lives" of those they see on social media themselves) and envy and depressive tendencies (wishing to possess the material and status of others) [12, 21, 22]. Unhealthy Internet use has been found to elicit symptoms of depressive episodes like sadness, lack of interest in activities previously enjoyed, and lack of energy, self-confidence, selfblame, suicidal ideation, indecision, and inattention [23]. In addition, studies (e.g., [24]) have found that pathological Internet use was positively correlated with depression. In most studies of depression, instruments were designed to cut across the lifespan (e.g., Beck Depression Inventory; [25]); children and adolescents (e.g., Behaviour Assessment System for Children; [26]), general adults' population (e.g., Beck Hopelessness Scale; [27]), and older adults (e.g., Geriatric Depression Scale; [28]) have been used. Since specific mental health concerns like postpartum depression and premenstrual dysphoric disorder depression pay attention to circumstantial events in people's lives, there is a need to consider the role of social media in inducing depression in people. However, currently, no instrument exists for measuring social media-induced depression tendencies within the mental health framework to the best of our knowledge. Nevertheless, from the review of previous studies on social media and depression, the following attributes were observed as markers of the link between depression and social media use: (a) The problematic use of smartphones increased attention seeking and heightened sensitivity (e.g., [29, 30]) (b) When little or absence of peer endorsement on social media (in the form of "likes," "following," etc.) induces a sense of worthlessness (e.g., [31-33]) (c) The measurement of achievement by those they see online consequently experiencing depressive tendencies avoiding reality (e.g., [22, 34]) A major limitation of the studies listed above was that they all used Beck Depression Inventory to measure depression related to social media use. Also, they referred to the depression experienced by social media users as depressive tendencies (e.g., [22]). This inference could also mean that the depressive tendency of the individuals might be responsible for their unhealthy social media use. This casts a cloud on the efficiency of the measurement of depression. The present study is aimed at delving into the nature of depression as caused by social media usage as it induces depression in the population. There is a gap in the current research on social mediainduced depression tendencies (SMIDT) among young people. To address this, we created an instrument to measure SMIDT to advance future studies with broader applicability. Understanding the mechanisms behind SMIDT is important to develop effective prevention strategies and interventions. Young people are particularly vulnerable to the negative effects of social media due to their developing sense of self and greater susceptibility to peer pressure and unmonitored exposure [35]. The impact of social media on this group is crucial in addressing their mental health needs. Social media can alter how people interact, and understanding its effect on mental health is crucial for optimizing social interactions [36]. This new scale can be used for self-awareness screening and evaluating the impact of interventions in promoting mental health literacy among young people. 1.1. Preliminary Stage: Item Generation. A focus group of undergraduates of different years of study (five students in each class) were asked to give insights on their understanding and the influence of social media on their mental health. 2 Depression Research and Treatment From the discussion, some items were generated. Also, a literature review was extensively carried out to add to the item pool. During the focus group discussions (which happened twice on two different days) and literature review, three major domains stood out (sensitivity/attention seeking, worthlessness, and escapism/reality avoidance). The sensitivity/attention seeking factor described the view of expectations of "like," "view," and "comments" from their social media activities. The worthlessness factor describes their self-esteem or self-worth, inadequacy, dissatisfaction, and isolation. Escapism/reality avoidance comprises items investigating the need for social compensation and escaping daily boredom and pressure.