In the essay, “Students Addicted to Social Media”, by the International Center for Media and the Public Agenda, the author critiques the dependence that a majority of college students have on their phones to feel up-to-date on social media. Dr. Susan D. Moeller conducted a survey in 2010 of about 200 students from the University of Maryland, where students were asked to give up social media for a period of twenty-four hours. The results of the survey revealed that many of the students were distraught by not having their social media; many students felt secluded from reality without being connected to their online persona via Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc. In the sixth paragraph of Moeller’s essay, one of her students stated, “Texting and
…show more content…
Although the app brings happiness, it also leverages a standard on its users. Whenever someone experiences a cool or significant moment, what would you expect most people to do? Take in the moment? Enjoy the time with those around them? These traditional behaviors seem ideal, yet nowadays so many people absolutely must document and upload what they are experiencing or seeing, so that the people following them would see and give their approval or envy. A 2014 Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology links Facebook usage to depression symptoms, reporting that “[b]oth studies provide evidence that people feel depressed after spending a great deal of time on Facebook because they feel badly when comparing themselves to others.” This is eerily similar to the behavior on Snapchat; for instance it seems that so many people on Snapchat love to upload constant videos of the concert they are attending. I see this mentality as an unhealthy shift in our society, from when we used to enjoy the music and emotions of a show, to this competition of who is having the best Friday night. We participate in a never-ending cycle to pursue a short-lived, unfulfilling pleasure, leaving us driven to seek the next dose. And just like the app, the Snap you’ve received will expire along with the …show more content…
Our society places the same social standard of how many “likes” or “retweets” people should receive on their post, and once that standard is achieved, they will be in their comfort zone: the approval of others. For some people, it even matters more who likes their picture rather than how many people like it. In my 18-year-old perspective, this is why the social media addiction is self- perpetuated. Among those around me with smartphones and tablets, so many individuals seek the acknowledgment of others by the measures of what content they are posting. This need for acceptance doesn’t always reflect the lack of present friendships; rather, this could be the harmful reassurance that one’s friends approve of what it is the person is doing, which provides the person with security. This spoon-fed of social status as a reward creates a dependent relationship: the method of which the person believes to provide them with security actually leads to further
Although the app brings happiness, it also leverages a standard on its users. Whenever someone experiences a cool or significant moment, what would you expect most people to do? Take in the moment? Enjoy the time with those around them? These traditional behaviors seem ideal, yet nowadays so many people absolutely must document and upload what they are experiencing or seeing, so that the people following them would see and give their approval or envy. A 2014 Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology links Facebook usage to depression symptoms, reporting that “[b]oth studies provide evidence that people feel depressed after spending a great deal of time on Facebook because they feel badly when comparing themselves to others.” This is eerily similar to the behavior on Snapchat; for instance it seems that so many people on Snapchat love to upload constant videos of the concert they are attending. I see this mentality as an unhealthy shift in our society, from when we used to enjoy the music and emotions of a show, to this competition of who is having the best Friday night. We participate in a never-ending cycle to pursue a short-lived, unfulfilling pleasure, leaving us driven to seek the next dose. And just like the app, the Snap you’ve received will expire along with the …show more content…
Our society places the same social standard of how many “likes” or “retweets” people should receive on their post, and once that standard is achieved, they will be in their comfort zone: the approval of others. For some people, it even matters more who likes their picture rather than how many people like it. In my 18-year-old perspective, this is why the social media addiction is self- perpetuated. Among those around me with smartphones and tablets, so many individuals seek the acknowledgment of others by the measures of what content they are posting. This need for acceptance doesn’t always reflect the lack of present friendships; rather, this could be the harmful reassurance that one’s friends approve of what it is the person is doing, which provides the person with security. This spoon-fed of social status as a reward creates a dependent relationship: the method of which the person believes to provide them with security actually leads to further