Self-esteem and Social Media
Social media has taken over the world of communication and has changed the ways in which we communicate on a daily basis. It is extremely influential on our lives because of how easily we are able to access these mediums of communication. I’m intrigued by the effects that social media has on people’s perceptions of their self-worth. Almost all of the social networking sites seem to measure, at least to some extent, the popularity level or status of its users. All have a number of ‘followers’ or ‘friends’ which if there’s a high number of followers or friends that seems to elevate a person’s popularity level or their online status. This in turn could make their self-esteem or ego rise, whereas if their follower level is low it may disappoint or aggravate that user. All of these sites also offer areas where followers can ‘like’ pictures or posts, ‘comment’ on these pictures/posts, ‘share’ the post, and what have you. How important are ‘likes’ and whatnot to our actual self-esteem? Do we value online popularity the same way or more than we value real-life interactions? How could this affect the mental health of those who use these networking sites? Is this kind of online community promoting more narcissistic persons in the community? So many questions… I’m not alone in asking these questions. I’m convinced that social media has a negative influence on the self-esteem of its users.
The University of Salford in the UK did a study last year on social media’s effects on self-esteem and anxiety, and reported that 50% of their 298 participants said that their “use of social networks like Facebook and Twitter makes their lives worse”. (Medical Daily) The study also reported that participants said ...
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Henderson, J. Maureen. (7/11/12). Is Social Media Destroying Your Self-Esteem? Forbes. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/jmaureenhenderson/2012/07/11/is-social-media-destroying-your-self-esteem/
Selfie-Loathing: Here’s Why Instagram Is Even More Depressing than Facebook. Slate Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/technology/2013/07/instagram_and_self_esteem_why_the_photo_sharing_network_is_even_more_depressing.html
Facebook And Social Media Activity Reflects Self-Esteem, Study Finds. Medical Daily. Retrieved from http://www.medicaldaily.com/facebook-and-social-media-activity-reflects-self-esteem-study-finds-256832
Facebook Envy: How The Social Network Affects Our Self-Esteem. Facebook Envy How The Social Network Affects Our SelfEsteem. Retrieved from http://www.wbur.org/2013/02/20/facebook-perfection
The growth of social media has improved our communication skills as a country, but where people are concerned, the substantial growth has had quite the toll on the self esteem of many. I do not think the goal of social media was to have negative effects on people’s body image and the way they see their self, but that is what has seemed to happen. With all of the famous people getting surgeries to make themselves look “perfect” is just showing people that how they were born and how they look naturally is not good enough. The negative effects seem to outweigh the very little amount of positive affects social media has on people’s body
The shallow, self-promoting aspects of social networking draw in narcissists like a moth to a flame. People who naturally display these traits are the highest users of social media sites. At the same time, extended use of social networking sites and social media applications, particularly the act of posting selfies, resulted in increased levels of narcissism (Halpern 4). It has been shown that those who regularly observe others’ selfies are more likely to leave comments or “like” posts. Interestingly, this relationship is not true for individuals higher in narcissism. Even though they continuously view other people’s photos, they don’t show an increase in interaction with them (Lee
Ever since the invention of the transistor – allowing the construction of increasingly advanced computers – digital technology has become increasingly integrated within our daily lives. Of recent times, a significant development in digital technology is its use in communication; especially in the form of social media or social networking. The psychological effects of high usage of social media (such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter) in today’s society have been critically evaluated. The main risks are associated with allowing the consequences of traditional forms of bullying and the internalisation of unrealistic body ideals to be escalated due to the high frequency of use and omnipresence of social media. However, social media does present
Furthermore, it is thought that social media lets humans connect with others and have more friends than those in the real world. However, this is not always true. People worry about their online worlds and whether people will like them. Online, people are more judgemental than real world friends, which can lead to a low self-esteem. The article “YES: Connecting Virtually Isn’t Like Real-World Bonding” by Larry Rosen states that “...our constant need to check comes from anxiety…” Obviously, technology has a negative effect on people as far as lower self-esteem and
According to a Dian de Vries and Rinaldo Kühne (2015), Facebook is by far the most popular social networking site worldwide with over one and a half billion active users every month. Sites like Facebook are most popular among emerging adults, making them the most vulnerable group to the negative effects social media can have on well being for a number of reasons. Individuals in this age range are starting to form and solidify self-perceptions which are directly linked to one’s well-being. Negative self-perceptions are associated with symptoms of depression and positive self-perceptions are associated with a healthier, more positive well-being. (de Vries & Kühne,
The general argument made by Natalie Jacewicz in her article "Social media bad for the minds of young people, right? Maybe not." is that "social media may help improve mental health by boosting self-esteem". More specifically Jacewicz argues that we should embrace social media because it "provides a source of emotional support". I disagree with Jacewicz argument and say that young American women and men my age should limit the amount of time they spend on social media because too much it is bad for their health, both physically and psychologically. Let me explain the divisions of how in details below.
Walton, Alice G. "Jealous Of Your Facebook Friends? Why Social Media Makes Us Bitter." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 22 Jan. 2013. Web. 29 Apr. 2014. .
Social networking can connect strangers across the world. As the evolution of communication continues, technology progresses and social networking grows. Social networks like Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook have grown to have billions of users. In fact in today’s society, it is necessary or nearly expected to use one if not all of these technological communication networks. The increasing use of social networking has had both a negative and positive effect on communication in relationships. The purpose of this literary analysis is to answer if social networks are helpful or harmful to relationships.
These things have become so common that not having them almost makes it seem like there is something missing. Because of features such as these, it is incredibly easy to share every aspect of what we are reading, doing, eating and listening to with everyone in our social networks. While this has meant incredible advances in the way we interact with our world, it has also fundamentally changed the way our social relationships are created and sustained. Social medial led users to have false impression of others and changed our feelings. Because social media users tend to only show the most positive aspects of their lives, social media users have a false sense of reality when it comes to how they seem themselves, how others see them and how they see other people. “It is not difficult to say that social media effect our perception of others” (Goshgarian213).
To begin with, social media has been proven to be a dangerous addiction due to the many negative side effects like: sleep deprivation, and self-esteem problems. Most of the adult American population is connected to some sort of social media site, and they have joined the banned wagon of people whom check their social media accounts at least five times a day. Using social media to often can be time consuming and essentially causes sleep deprivation because the user stays up late on social media. Since social media has grown in popularity many have began to believe that social media is a life necessity. It is viewed by many as a daily necessity like brushing our teeth, or yet as important as eating. People whom are constantly on social media have been linked to develop self-esteem problems because they are so consumed on pretending and portraying this image of a person they are not. Social media has became such an addiction that many people wake up and the first thing they do is...
One example that plays a part in this occurs when an individual spends a large amount of time looking through other’s user’s profile’s content. If an individual spends an excessive amount of time on sites such Facebook and Instagram, exclusively looking at other people’s photos and profiles, this can enable a sense of exclusion, envy, and loneliness (Krasnova, Wenninger, Widjaja, & Buxmann, 2013). Not only do we focus on looking at other people’s content, but in most cases we try to replicate our image from those who are have a more interesting and attractive profiles. A study conducted in 2015 by Nesi J Prinsten, focused on the role of how “social comparison and feedback-seeking” affect the with the development of depressive symptoms. The study was focused around 8th to 9th graders, and the results reported that those who engaged in social comparison and feedback- seeking behavior, had experienced even more depressive systems later that year. With this information gathered and collected, there is evidence that supports the idea that social media can have a negative impact within an individual’s social and physical
Teens on social media have been around for many years. Have you ever thought of the Internet being a place where teen’s self-esteem may be affected in a negative way? However, it doesn 't mean that social media is out to purposely make people feel this way, it 's all how the teens per take. Many people don’t realize that the little things others post on social media can affect someone in the long run. This is especially true with young teenagers who have access to the internet and social media platforms. I strongly believe that social media does affect teens self-esteem by lowering it due to the reason of advertisement, personal image, and bullying.
Several decades ago, communications philosopher Marshall McLuhan spoke about the development of the Global Village and how the evolution of new technologies would help connect people on opposite sides of the world, creating online communities that would break boundaries and borders. While this change has been recognized, so too has the idea explored by his successors in which while individuals were expected to look at others in the world through a telescope, they have alternatively developed the tendency to look at themselves through a microscope. As the era of worldwide connectivity began, so did the era of ‘me, me, me’. Both the hardware and the software of the new millennium, inclusive of the iPhone’s forward-facing camera, and apps that allow one to fix blemishes and whiten teeth, have adapted to allow this change to an inward focus. While this has certainly caught on, it has also begun to cause a lot of problems. The act of posting about the self began to be seen as a negatively self-centered one when Facebook NewsFeeds were filled with egotistic stories and ‘Selfies,’ photos of the self. Shortly after, the application Instagram was created, where the occurrence of the Selfie was magnified to a greater degree. This intensive focus inward, and the way these pieces of media are shared, have made some individuals reliant on the positive expressions of others for self-confidence and social approval. When self-esteem is intertwined with how many ‘likes’ a photo gets on a mobile application, we start to see a shift in how self-awareness is formed, what people will do for this approval, and how some will react to a lack of attention.
Gonzales, Amy L., and Jeffrey T. Hancock (2011), “Mirror, Mirror on My Facebook Wall: Effects of Facebook Exposure on Self Esteem,” Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 14 (January/February), 79–83.
Social networking sites like Facebook can have both negative and positive effects. Facebook can leave us feeling like we are not good enough if we don’t have enough likes on our pictures or if we do not have a certain amount of friends. While on the other hand it can make us feel empowered and worthy when we have a significant amount of likes on our picture and thousands of friends on Facebook. The following two articles argue whether or not social networking sites like Facebook, have a negative or positive effect on one’s overall well-being. As the old saying goes, there are always two sides to everything.