Susan D. Moeller's Article On Students Addicted To Social Media

Improved Essays
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

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    As a social media active senior at Sigourney High School, I never thought about the validity of the points made in the essay I read. Every day of the week, we, as students are glued to a form of social media at some point in the day. Social media is at our finger tips at all times, whether it is on our one-on-one computers, or checking our phones between classes. Although social media is great in many aspects, it can draw kids away or shelter them from things they should experience in life.…

    • 1036 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Social media is defined by Merriam Webster as forms of electronic communication through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content. (Merriam-Webster, 2011). The recent popularity of social media and related technologies has had a negative effect on the mental well being of adolescent users due to the addictions and unrealistic expectations that social media creates. The “like” system panders to users’ needs for validation, which reinforces self -centered thoughts and behaviors. Sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, add more complications and expectations to the lives of users because they compare themselves to others, which can fuel feelings of inadequacy.…

    • 1494 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In Simon Dumenco’s writing titled: “If We’re All So Sick of You, Facebook, Why Can’t We Quit You?” , Simon touches upon the fact that when people attempt to take a break from Facebook, Facebook sends them emails, trying to convince them to come back. He also explains how, originally, people felt required to make a Facebook, and now, people feel like they have to have the mobile app. Despite Simon having the opinion that people have difficulty escaping Facebook’s grasp, he also seems to imply that he thinks Facebook is a phase that will eventually die out, just like MySpace and AOL.…

    • 816 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Papadomichelaki and Vance question, “But doesn't this striving for popularity by collecting friends as a form of currency debase the whole idea of friendship-lasting bonds built through shared experiences, attachments, affinity, rapport, understanding?” The biggest drawback of social media applications is that it significantly minimizes socializing in real life, which causes us to miss out on precious moments and beautiful memories. These days, If you don't snapchat an event, where you really there and did it really happen? People are often worried about how they well they captured certain moments on snapchat rather than actually living the moment and having fun.…

    • 1033 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Today, over 76% of teenagers use social media and 94% of teens check their phone daily. Tennagers sepnd too much time with and on their phones. This causes them to miss real life connections, it can lead to think poorly about themselves, and it gives them a feeling that they have a lot of true friends on social media when in fact they don’t. Technology seems to be connecting us but it’s separating and isolating us more than it’s doing any form of good.…

    • 813 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Can the average social media user live without exploring social media every hour? Social media is extremely popular among the teenagers, and it affects not only teenagers but other ages as well. The effects of social platforms have on teenagers are not sleeping, females are concerned about their image, and social skills. In today’s world, social media became a platform not only to interact, but to be a part of an online community. There are many reasons people use social media today, such to create developing friendships, start online relationships, or to discover what new things are happening worldwide.…

    • 1397 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    And because of a variety of social and cultural factors, social media has become an important public space where teens can gather and socialize broadly with peers in an informal way” (boyd 7). boyd shows that technology is significant because if people cannot be there physically, then they can be there virtually for their friends. Social media helps teen to connect with each other. Despite what boyd states, Turkle disagrees and discusses “All of this makes them fluent with technology but bring a new set of insecurities. They nurture friendships on social-networking sites and then wonder if they are among friends.…

    • 1206 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Part A: Summary The opinion piece by Jenna Wortham “Turn Off the Phone (And the Tension),” is an article written to discuss the issue of this generation’s “need” to be connected to a smartphone. Wortham starts off by telling us about how it wasn’t until she unable to use a smartphone that she realized how much we are attached to our phones on a day to day basis. Therefore, as her first point on the topic, she mentioned how we are constantly worried about what we may be missing on social media for which the following, posting, viewing, commenting, and liking on others’ pictures and videos, is something that has become a huge part in our everyday lives. She also brings about the fact that “living an always-on digital life” with social media causes thrill and tension to those who use it.…

    • 975 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    When you hear the word “social media” what do you think of? Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, even Snapchat is what I would imagine. I am sure we can all admit that we have one or even all of these that were named. While Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat are easy ways to communicate with friends and family, few stop to consider the implications its usage may have for them in the future, or the hidden dangers of having an account. Besides the effect of your eligibility for employment that comes with these networks, impair a person’s ability to handle real life situations, and allow unknown predators access to private information.…

    • 1194 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    Moreover, the use of social has led to a greater extent being common among students on campus and the use has increased drastically in the past five years. Very many students are members of Facebook and with the improvements in the media sector; many of them have been able to preserve their personal information as compared to past users. Everyone wonders what will be the future of the social media? References Clive Thompson 's text "I 'm So Totally, Digitally Close To You" from Alfano, C. L., & O 'Brien, A. J. (2010). Envision in depth: Reading, writing and research arguments.…

    • 1870 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Albert Einstein once stated, “Technological progress is like an axe in the hands of a pathological criminal.” This quote from 1800s-1900s has become even more relevant in the 21st century, because of the advancing popularity in social media platforms. Adolescents are mainly exposed to modern media sites because they’re growing up in a time where technology is advancing rapidly. Advocates of social media platforms claim that the internet is what connects the world together; it is an efficient and helpful way of communication, a modernized way for students and teachers to search for information and conveniently spreads informative news faster. However, social media manages to put society 's privacy in danger every day.…

    • 1090 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Hamza Nadeem Persuasive Essay “The more social media we have, the more we think we're connecting, yet we are really disconnecting from each other” (JR). According this quote by JR, we are really disconnecting from each other by using social media rather than connecting, and this is a problem nowadays, especially with teenagers. And this is the main reason why understanding the benefits and risks of social media are important for teens before they go on and get in trouble for not using social media the correct way. There are many risks of social media.…

    • 895 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    In todays society we have an narcissistic epidemic in the making. A very large portion of our population is now connecting and socializing through social networking sites (SNS) and it’s changing the way we view and promote ourselves. With all of our “reality” TV starts and “selfie” obsession this hardly can come as a shock. The Millennial groups use of social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram has become an overwhelming part of their day to day life. Our current generations is so involved with social networking sites that it’s given us more insight on how these sites can affect ones development.…

    • 1300 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    It’s been scientifically proven that the longer amount of time college students surf Facebook, the more they feel worse about their own lives. I personally am guilty of Facebook envy with my friend, Savannah. Savannah comes from a very wealthy family and is going to school in Hawaii. Whenever she posts new picture of her college experience, it makes me downgrade my own. But then when I talk to her and she comments on the fact that she really isn’t having the best time in Hawaii, it make me realize that she just puts on a happy face for…

    • 1870 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In a time when society is more egocentric than ever, people must resist or conform to a form of life that revolves strongly around knowing what everybody is doing all the time through social media platforms. Ms. Ham and Mr. Standage focus on how trends draw people out of their normal social interactions and into a world that seemingly revolves around themselves (We Shall Overshare, Mary Ham 280). Their focus upon the false sense of attention that people get from sharing about themselves shows how the audience in each article should be able to relate to this kind of situation. The world that people live in today is full of self-centered beings that seek only to grab attention for themselves and distancing themselves from their friends and family…

    • 1199 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays

Related Topics