JPPBR

Journal of Psychiatry Psychology and

http://jppbr.ub.ac.id/ Behavioral Research
DOI: 10.21776/ub.jppbr.2024.005.02.4
eISSN: 2723-083X pISSN: 2723-0821 Vol. 5 No. 2, September 2024

SOCIAL MEDIA AND MENTAL HEALTH

Bramastian Samudro Alfathron

Correspondence: [email protected]
Faculty of Medicine, University of Brawijaya, Malang, Indonesia

REVIEW OPEN ACCESS

ABSTRACT
Introduction – For many young people dealing with mental illness, social media has bas become an important part of their life to dealing
with mental illness. Social media is a wide term that refers to mobile platforms and the web that allow people to communicate with one another
in a network. Instagram Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, etc are some of the most popular social media platforms among young people.
Methods – This paper results from literature that talks about social media and mental health.
Results – Social media have a lot of positive content and negative content. Many young people appear to use social media to share their
personal experiences, look for information about mental health, and give and get support from others who have similar or same mental health
challenges experiences.
Discuss – The positive impact of social media will affect young people’s promotion of mental health and awareness about mental health. The
positive impact of social media has a benefit where they can find social support about mental health. Social media also can make young people
or individuals receive negative peer feedback in social media may have negative consequences for psychological development and well-being.
Conclusion – Besides the many positive impacts in social media uses, social media has a lot of negative impacts with the consequences.
Negative content such as online harassment, sexting, and cyberbullying will hurt mental health which will cause young people stress, anxiety,
and depression.

Keywords: social media, mental health, young.

Article History: Cite this as: Alfathron, B.S. Social media and mental health. Journal of Psychiatry Psychology and Behavioral
Received: August 23, 2021. Research; 2024.5:2. p17-19.
Accepted: September 5, 2023.
Published: September 30, 2024.

INTRODUCTION way to seek out for treat information about diagnosis and social
and emotional support.5
The rapid proliferation of social media platforms has enabled
a growing body of research over the last few years.1 Twitter, Many young people spend a good amount of time on social
Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and other social media media. Although social media have positive content and get a
platforms have quickly become an integral part of many young positive reaction from peers is far more common than negative
people's lives and the most widely used internet platform ones.6 Young people who spend a lot of time on social media
among them. Many social media platforms are used to share, are potentially experiencing a greater risk of negative effects.9
co-create, or exchange various information, messages, photos, In several studies and research has shown that a small number
and videos.1,2 Many young people use social media to share of adolescents, mainly receive negative ones on the social
their personal experiences, co-create, or exchange various media6. Young people who receive negative comments from
forms of digital content, including information, messages, their peers on social media may hurt their psychological
photos, and videos.1,3 In several studies, social media use and development and well-being.3 There are so many concerns
various aspects of young people’s well-being and mental about social media use that contribute to psychological
health have a connection. Young people are trying to find distress.7 Depressed adolescents use social media more
information about mental health, and give and get or accept frequently than their non-depressed peers.8 Research studies
support from others that facing similar mental health that have been done categorized the link between social media
challenges in social media.1,4 Social media platforms may be a use and increased adverse consequences of anxiety, stress,
way to seek information about mental health. For individuals depression, and loneliness. As the use of social media
suffering from mental health concerns, social media may be a increases, the younger generation is increasingly concerned

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about its adverse effects. The raises of young generation younger generation raising alarm regarding its adverse effect.
worries because of the adverse effects of social media use.9 Several research studies have found that social media usage
can cause undesirable outcomes such as an increase in stress,
depression, anxiety, and loneliness.9 According to several
METHOD research, young adults are predominantly at risk of developing
The author used 14 journals and literature that discuss using mental health issues at a high rate of concern because of the
social media and its impact on mental health conditions. negative aspects of social media such as online harassment,
cyberbullying, sexting, anxiety, stress, and depression.13

RESULT According to several findings, social media's direct causes of

mental illness include depression and suicidal ideation. The
Positive Social Media Uses Impact social media users were exposed to behaviors that impacted
negatively on their emotional well-being, including
Social media has unique characteristics and they can create cyberbullying. Studies have demonstrated that social media
new opportunities to promote the mental health of young also can make people suffer because of social media
people. There are so many potential benefits associated with addiction.14 Negative posts on social media appear to be
using social media, including entertainment, humor, creative emotionally contagious to others and make people who see the
expression, and identity exploration.10 Social media is highly negative status on social media feel negative.7
accessible and can create the possibility of new connections
online. This may provide an opportunity to obtain online
support, for example.11 Accepting online support can also
protect young people with mental illness, such as anxiety, DISCUSS
depression, and suicidal tendencies. In several studies, it was
found that more than 57% of psychiatrically hospitalized youth
received social encouragement or support on social media Deal with Negative Aspects or Content in Social Media
within two weeks of their admission.12
Using social media has so many negative contents with a lot of
Young people with depression may experience more social consequences.7 In several studies, symptoms of severe
benefits in using social media because they less worry about depression in the younger generation are associated with more
stigma and privacy due to anonymity. They can connect with negative interactions on social media and less positive
other young people who have the same mental problem or interactions on social media.1 To deal with negative content
mental illness experiences and provide social support through adolescents must identify the content and discontinue harmful
a common hope.7 social media behavior such as being involved in negative
interactions in social media, and sharing risky behavior.
Promoting the mental health of young people on social media Several observed using social media purposelessly when in a
goes beyond the daily work of young people. Social media bad mood or low mood did not seem helpful.7 Adolescents
promotion should include healthcare applications in detection, need to be educated about what is mental health, its meaning
treatment, and prevention. Regarding screening, it is possible and well-being, and mental illness and the ways to prevent or
to check social media for signs of depression or other mental manage it.14
health issues. When users show signs of emotional distress or
risk of suicide, social media platforms like Instagram and Besides many negative contents with a lot of consequences,
Facebook have implemented detection and intervention social media have so many positive contents. To distract from
procedures. Many social media platforms provide negative content, they can use social media to find humorous
opportunities to increase publicity and awareness of mental content and creative content such as quotes or art. In several
findings that have been reported positive content is helpful to
health.10
mental health. Adolescents can use social media to connect
Negative Social Media Uses Impact with a community of other depressed individuals to get support
may lead to a decrease in depression7.
Social media users are potentially experiencing a greater risk
of negative effects. Social media usage is increasing among the
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CONCLUSION 9. Bashir H, Bhat SA. Effects of social media on mental

health: A review. International Journal of Indian
Social media have many platforms including Facebook, Psychology. 2017;4(3):125-31.
Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, etc can share, co-create, and 10. Nesi J. The impact of social media on youth mental
exchange various information, messages, photos, and videos. health: challenges and opportunities. North Carolina
Many young people use social media and spend time on social medical journal. 2020 Mar 1;81(2):116-21.
media. There is so much content in social media which has 11. Nesi J, Wolff JC, Hunt J. Patterns of social media use
positive content and negative content. Each content (positive among adolescents who are psychiatrically
and negative) has a consequence that will impact mental hospitalized. InDigital Media and Developing Minds
health. The positive impact of social media will affect young Second National Congress and Exposition, Oct, 2018,
people to promote mental health and raise awareness of mental Cold Spring Harbor, Long Island, New York, NY,
health. The positive impact of social media has a benefit where US; Preliminary results were presented as a poster at
they can find social support about mental health. Besides many the aforementioned conference. 2019 Jun. Elsevier
positive impacts in social media use, social media has a lot of Science.
negative impacts with the consequences. Negative content 12. Nesi J, Prinstein MJ. Using social media for social
such as online harassment, sexting, and cyberbullying will hurt comparison and feedback-seeking: Gender and
mental health which will cause young people stress, anxiety, popularity moderate associations with depressive
and depression. symptoms. Journal of abnormal child psychology.
2015 Nov;43(8):1427-38.
Because of the negative consequences, young people need to 13. Kaur R, Bashir H. Impact of Social Media on Mental
deal with the negative aspects of content on social media. They Health of Adolescents. International Journal of
can have more positive interactions and less negative Education. 2015;5:22-9.
interactions. Also, they must identify the content and 14. O’Reilly M, Dogra N, Whiteman N, Hughes J, Eruyar
discontinue harmful social media behavior. With that solution, S, Reilly P. Is social media bad for mental health and
young people will be spared from mental health problems. wellbeing? Exploring the perspectives of adolescents.
Clinical child psychology and psychiatry. 2018
Oct;23(4):601-13.
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