Social media addiction - A threat to human society

Introduction

Present generation in computer era which influence the human kind in many ways. Use of advanced technology is inseparable in all spheres of our life especially in this covid-19 pandemic scenario.^[1] Social medias are one of the best communication channel such as applications, websites that allow people to share their ideas, thoughts, and feelings through mediums such as photos, music and videos. It is an environment in which a group of people come together to share their views, data, relationships by using internet communication channels. The use of social media sometimes becomes addictive as it affects our brain’s reward area. Social media addiction can be referred as the compulsive use of social media platforms which lead to negative effects on daily life of a person. This term often used to refer to someone who spends too much time on any forms of social media. Research studies showed that the excessive use of technology such as internet and social media by teenagers has caused disruptions in their physical and mental health, sleeping patterns, their weight and levels of exercise, and notably in their school work. Excessive internet usage is sometimes linked to lower grades.^[1], ^[2]

A recent study found that time spent on Facebook has a strong negative relationship with the average grades obtained by a student throughout his entire academic experience. The effects of social media addiction include anxiety or depression, increased isolation, decreased physical activity, low self-esteem, and poor work or school performance, among many others. Overall social media addiction was observed in 27.4% of the study subjects, 24.0% in government and 30.8% in private colleges (Z = 3.26, P = 0.001). However, the prevalence of social media addiction among social media users (1389) was 36.9%. The prevalence of mild addiction was high. A study (2019) suggested that teenagers who use social media for more than 3 hours daily are more likely to experience mental health problems, such as depression, anxiety, aggression and antisocial behaviour. The best way to beat social media distraction is create a distraction free zone, use of social media blocker, turning off notifications and setting a schedule for checking social media. The use of multiple social media platforms is more strongly associated with depression and anxiety among young adults than time spent in online. Overusing social networking sites can result in many health and personal relationship problems also seen in other addictions.^[3], ^[4], ^[5]

The imbalanced time and attention to entertainment activities on the Internet can potentially lead to academic distraction. The heavy use of Facebook or the Internet for entertainment could alter students' habitual behavior in reading, writing, and attention for completing academic tasks.^[6]

Objective

Assess the social media addiction among the students.

Methodology

Result

Discussion

Present study findings shows that vast majority (103(74%)) of the students were addicted to the social media. This must be the prime concern for the institution because it may affects their academic. Similar findings were obtained from the study conducted in California State University that shows that persons who visited any social media site at least 58 times per week were three times more risk of feeling socially isolated and depressed compared to those who used social media lesser than 9 times in a week.^[1], ^[2]

In contrast to the present study the other study that shows that most of the students had moderate level of social media addiction whereas very less were shown severe level of social media addiction. Majority 42% of nursing students had moderate social media addiction, 30% nursing students had mild social media addiction, only 14% nursing students had severe social media addiction, and the remaining 14% had no social media addiction. Based on social media addiction scales scores, nursing students had maximum score of 89 with a mean 52.33%, mean score percentage 52.33%, and standard deviation 19.079.^[3], ^[4], ^[5], ^[6]

Implications

Study findings helps to understand the influence of Social media. Appropriate usage of Social media need to be insisted in the curriculum for the mental health. So that Social interactions can not be hindered.

Recommendations

Correlation study can be done on Impact of Social media addiction over the academic performance

Similar study can be done over the different groups

Should make a strategies to limit Social media dependence

Strategies to be inculcated to improve Social interactions

Conclusion

Present study shows that our young generation is transforming into dependency on technology which is limiting the Social interactions and also had ill effect on both physical and mental health. It may leads to antisocial behaviour and rise in crime rate. It is the high time for the policy-makers to restrict on this and make provision to improve the interaction skills.

Conflict of Interest

None.