Friday, 25 May 2018

Negative Effects of Social Media


Alexander Pope said "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing." it goes perfectly with the amateur usage of social media especially in the 21st century. We take social media for granted and do whatever we want which comes biting back later.

Social media has brought about new opportunities and avenues for the world to connect at large. With social media, the world has become a smaller place. On one hand, it is a great invention, and a lot can be done to better our lifestyles. But if we look at it with thousands of immature users it is becoming a somewhat scary place to live in.

There is a reason why most parents or older siblings try to keep the young ones away from social media handles these days. From being a platform to connect or share worldviews it has narrowed down to bring a platform to boost and troll. That is sad given that we can do so much with social media, it is sad to see how low to stoop.

Today kids of ages 10 have the access and accounts on social handles; it can turn into over addiction and an escape to a fantasy world. This fantasy world that we create behind the 15-inch laptop screen might be a scary affair. The fit models with perfect bodies, exotic travel locations, and photo-perfect moments most often don't match with the lives we lead on a daily basis. This disconnect might want us to aspire for more which might not be possible in reality and can affect our mental health.

The thrust for more followers or likes has a dangerous effect on our mental health. You start feeling anxious, a lack of identity, less sleep causing insomnia, a negative body image can be some of the significant issues that a social media addict might, face. You make yourself as desirable as the models you see around you, you keep adding filters and edit your pictures to look 'perfect, and your sense of self is lost. You want to become someone you are not. You start hating yourself for not having the ideal body, the perfect shape, so on and so forth.

Researchers across the globe have found that the "fear of missing out" created across all popular social feeds can substantially lower self-esteem and fuel issues like anxiety and depression among individuals.

Cyberbullying is also heavily linked to the constant need to prove oneself better than the others on social media.

On a large scale, not only teenagers but people nowadays take the social platform too literally and believe in a lot of fake news of hoax that is being circulated just for publicity purposes. People today are falling for dangerous trends that they see on social media or think it is cool to be a part of. The trend of being a part of a social group is what is causing more harm than good.

You have to understand you being social has nothing to do with the number of friends or followers you have on social media. It can all be a farce, just by seeing another peer having many followers you cannot be jealous and want that life. Don't let social media be a drug that is so addictive that you cannot live without.

All of these leads to identify threats that take place due to the sharing of too much personal information on the net unnecessarily. You can also see a rise in hate speech and social disgust across social media accounts which is completely uncalled for. The most disgusting thing that is coming up a lot in the 21st century is cyberstalking. It can be too dangerous and is even taking lives. Immature usage of social platform has to stop and stop now.

After using social media handles many people decide to keep themselves away from it as there is no or very minimal privacy with the extensive use of social platforms. If not handled sensibly your life becomes a window to the world. A subject of discussion.

We as a world lack smart users. We either take everything for granted, or we take things too literally. Having said all of this it does not mean that social media is all that bad with only negatives. Of course, not, there are plenty of benefits of social media. It keeps us connected across vast distances, let's us find our school buddies and long lost colleagues. If your motive is to stay connect or share an opinion about life and other stuff but if social site is your source of news or emotional upliftment it is undoubtedly a bad idea.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Anish_Chaube/2533853
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9916052

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