Research Podcast: Dangers of Mediated Communication

 Hello guys! Welcome back to another weekly blog post where I will be discussing the dangers of online communication with specifics in social media. I've done research on this topic by using in class materials and a podcast.

The podcast I have chosen is published by: The Psychology of your 20s, and is titled: "Is social media corrupting your brain?". It discusses the psychology of social media, how it controls our behaviors, social comparison and what makes TikTok so addictive. In class we have learned about how online communication can be beneficial but how it can also be dangerous, and today I choose to discuss the ways it is negative. 

The link to the podcast is here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/38jwvvLsh8QEx5XSQ08XBu

Social media has been created with intent to capture our attention for extended periods of time, curating addiction and dependency to it. Algorithms used by social media sites create content specifically catered to each user, so they constantly view things that align directly with their interests. This triggers a positive feeling within our brains when we scroll on social media. "When a person uses social media and posts a picture, or a status or video, they receive a like. They receive positive social feedback and a dopamine hit to the brain (Sbeg, J. 2022). The release of dopamine that is triggered by this positive social feedback is almost similar to the neurological release humans receive if they had used addictive substances. Companies are aware of this fact and they use it to create compulsion loops which are habitual chains of activity that a user may feel compelled to repeat. "The more our brain receives dopamine from social media, the more the behavior of scrolling your feed and visiting the site is positively reinforced (Sbeg, J. 2022). Excessive use of social media leads to user addiction and can become dangerous extremely quickly, even causing physical problems. 

This connects to the information we learned about in class because it also talked about addiction as a result of excessive media use. Even describing the condition as "Internet Addiction Disorder" (IAD) because it has become prevalent in more people, affecting them mentally and physically. People have started to use social media as a sort of refuge for their negative emotions and mental state, therefore forming a connection to their screens and using them for hours each day. Addictions to social media cause users to "...Neglect family, work, studies, social relationships and themselves. This is an addictive obsession that is human-centered and screen-deep" (Psychology Today, 2022). It has been said that IAD is entirely similar to substance abuse and can be comparable to an eating disorder or a gambling addiction. Symptoms from serious cases of IAD include: shivers, anxiety, tremors and even nausea; causing extreme stress to the body and mind. 

Another great article that supports this information: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10779052/


                                    Premium Vector | Symptoms of Internet addiction The impact of the Internet on human health

 

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