How Social Media Is Directly Affecting Your Mental Health

Relationships

In an ever-connected world, as much as it might increase connectivity amongst family and friends, social media is also the culprit responsible for creating separation between people. A phone’s presence can interfere with social interactions between human beings, especially when engaging in stimulating conversation about something meaningful, as researchers have found with one study.

Researchers for the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships paired thirty-four strangers to have a ten-minute conversation with each other, with half of the participants having their mobile phones present during the interaction. Those with their phone present were less positive remembering the interaction and felt a disconnect to their partner when engaging with them. Romantic relationships are also affected by social media, as researchers at the University of Guelph in Canada surveyed three-hundred people, ranging in ages seventeen to twenty-four, and discovered women spent more time on Facebook than men and experienced the emotions of jealousy and envy more often when doing so. The researchers believed Facebook’s environment created these feelings of insecurity and enhanced a female’s concern about the quality of her romantic relationships.

Read on for the overall impact on emotional well-being.