Introduction
Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other social networking sites have become a part of our day to day life helping us to share our day to day activities, and gain information. But at the same time, it is high time to realise that there are a wide range of negative effects of social media that may influence our lives unconsciously. Yes, there are benefits that come with it especially when trying to visit with friends and family or wishing to explore new ideas but there are drawbacks that people mostly overlook.
Mental Health Struggles
Another negative effect of social media is its influence on the state of people’s mental health. Excessive use can cause anxiety, depression and loneliness for example in a social network that is widely used positivity can bring about negative sentimental values. Looking at the images shared on social media, people have the tendency of comparing themselves to the images they find there which makes them feel generally inadequate. These two aspects, or rather constant comparison with others, as well as fake persona that people create with the help of social media accounts, can negatively influence self-esteem and lead to mental health problems.
Erosion of Privacy
Another major concern that highlights the negative effects of social media is privacy. With social media platforms, users are most times forced to post details from their profile, sometimes unknowingly what they are posting. It can be utilised for advertisement purposes or in the worst case scenario, get used by wrongdoers. One of the major downsides of social media is the inability to keep our lives private as people’s information can be utilised for ill purposes such as identity theft among others.
The Spread of Misinformation
The publishing of information particularly on the popular social networking sites is fast and this is both good and bad news. As it facilitates the fast flow of news it also opens the gate for fake news to spread rampantly. It is a fact that with the help of technology fake trends appear very fast and can provoke unnecessary panic or split society. This issue highlights the negative effects of social media, as it becomes quite hard to discern fallacies for what they are and thus often people are confused.
Strategies for Healthy Engagement
One can utilise social media experience without being a victim of its adverse consequences. Some of the established ways that can help include creating time limitations on the usage, selecting feeds that consist of positive content only, and replacing the online time with real life engagements. In this way, people are free to use such a tool as social networks and have no opportunity to face the negative effects of these networks.
The Bottom Line
The negative effects of social media have repercussions on the mental, privacy and interpersonal aspects of life. Thus, by paying attention to mindful actions and by setting the appropriate boundaries, individuals are better capable of going through the web safely and, at the same time, with a positive impact. The reality today is that social media is a reality and thus has to be employed in a manner that increases its usefulness in the lives of users.
