To the astonishment of many, a recent study found that people who use social media excessively exhibit the same ‘poor decision-making traits’ as drug addicts and pathological gamblers.
The research conducted at Michigan State University (MSU) reports a connection between the decision-making capabilities of drug addicts and social media users, highlighting the impact of social media on our mental health.
The report being the first to examine a relationship between the two shows concerns for social media overuse and encourages the users to take the addiction seriously.
Today, more than one-third of the human population on the planet is using social networks. Health and wellbeing charities are consistently pointing to the effects of social media on things like sleep, mental health, and even relationships.
In fact, the Royal Society for Public Health launched the first ever-social media-free month in September. Called the Scroll Free September, the initiative to quit the different social media handles like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter saw roughly 320,000 participants in the UK.
Just recently, Instagram launched a ‘Your Activity’ dashboard that allows users to set daily limits on the time they spent on the app.
Despite the tremendous benefits, social media offers – we, the users have to be proactive when it comes to the use of digital media. Limiting the consumption and knowing when to pull away is essential if we don’t want to be considered an ‘addict.’
Photo: Gabriel Alcala / Wired
The research conducted at Michigan State University (MSU) reports a connection between the decision-making capabilities of drug addicts and social media users, highlighting the impact of social media on our mental health.
The report being the first to examine a relationship between the two shows concerns for social media overuse and encourages the users to take the addiction seriously.
Today, more than one-third of the human population on the planet is using social networks. Health and wellbeing charities are consistently pointing to the effects of social media on things like sleep, mental health, and even relationships.
In fact, the Royal Society for Public Health launched the first ever-social media-free month in September. Called the Scroll Free September, the initiative to quit the different social media handles like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter saw roughly 320,000 participants in the UK.
Related: How to Free Yourself From Your Smartphone (infographic)Additionally, the leading tech companies are also realizing the issue and introducing different measures to help users manage their time on social media.
Just recently, Instagram launched a ‘Your Activity’ dashboard that allows users to set daily limits on the time they spent on the app.
Despite the tremendous benefits, social media offers – we, the users have to be proactive when it comes to the use of digital media. Limiting the consumption and knowing when to pull away is essential if we don’t want to be considered an ‘addict.’
Photo: Gabriel Alcala / Wired
