The rise of social media addiction is not surprising; in fact, it is by design. App developers have purposely curated their platforms to ensure longer interaction rates, allowing them to gain more profit through ads, data, and memberships. The addictive traits of many of our phone apps can cause young adults to develop feelings of low self-esteem, fear of missing out, and even anxiety.  

Every color you see on a social media app was deliberately chosen to make you feel an emotion, for example, the red notification bubbles. The color red is proven to stimulate the brain's excitement centers and cause a sense of urgency. This vibrant color makes you want to click on the app and see what you could be missing out on. 

Endless scrolling or auto-playing videos is another addictive design aspect of social media. With our social media feeds providing us with a continuous stream of new media every day, there doesn't seem to be an organic way to stop or take a break from consuming this content without almost feeling "out of the loop." This causes people to stay on apps for hours without even noticing. 

A third way social media is addictive is its integration of read receipts. Read receipts are little labels that show when someone has read your message. If you see that someone has read your message, you will wait for a reply. If you open someone else's message and know they can see you've read it, you are likely to reply quickly. 

How could these simple features even come close to affecting people's mental health? These features keep you on the app all day, where you will be constantly consuming media of heavily edited images, perfect bodies and outfits, and even fun vacations. This is when many users start developing feelings of low self-esteem, fear of missing out, and anxiety.

Instagram did a study reported by Kate Linebaugh, where they found that their own app has negatively impacted the body images of 1 in 3 teenage girls. Another study by Katherine Hammer found that 40% of all teens felt “unattractive” after using Instagram. 

A contributing factor for why mental health issues can stem from social media usage is the currency of “like counts” equating to self-worth. This feeling isn't just learned, it's biological. In a study run by psychologist Lauren E. Sherman, it was discovered that “pictures being presented with many likes elicit stronger activity in the ventral striatum, an area (in the brain) involved in the processing of rewards.” 
It was also found that heightened social media addiction can make young people more curious about other people's lives, therefore worsening their “Fear Of Missing Out.” Other known as “FOMO,” this 20th-century phenomenon is defined by Professor Mahmutoglu as a, “new type of addiction which causes individuals to spend much longer time on social networks as they are afraid of missing out the developments and failing to be informed of developments on social networking sites.” This means when people see other people having fun, they feel left out and start to have feelings of self-doubt and isolation. 

According to Professor Ariel Shensa, these feelings cause a complex loop because it is proven that “individuals who experience depression and anxiety also develop addictive behaviors.” Developers reel users in with their addictive app traits and users get hooked and dependent on the app. Users then start developing self-deprecating feelings, which in turn, reinforce the user’s initial addiction to the apps due to addictive behaviors and feelings of self-worth through likes.

After knowing all of this information, how can we prevent social media from becoming addictive and a negative reinforcer for bad behavior, and keep it light-hearted and a fun way to connect with friends?

The first suggestion is to set app or screen time limits. This not only can reduce the amount of time we spend consuming media, but it can also prevent hours of endless scrolling. This can be set up in many phone settings and is a great way to remind yourself to take breaks and spend time away from your device.

Another way is to follow only people you look up to and truly care about. Following people you know are authentic is a great way to eliminate unnecessary body standards, and following close friends and family allows for less competition and more celebration of each other. 

Lastly, you can take away the color psychology element of the addiction. You can actually set your phone on a black-and-white mode, which takes away those bright, engaging colors that trap you on the app. Although you may not want to keep your phone in this setting, it is a great way to experiment and see firsthand how boring your phone can get once the color psychology aspect is eliminated.

Now, we know how social media can be harmful, why it was built that way, and ways to reduce these effects in order to make our time online a more positive experience overall. If you purposefully surround yourself with love and positivity, you'll be able to focus on your own goals and victories. 

I'll see you next week, but in the meantime, be kind to yourself,

Leo

References: Magzter, ResearchGate, Wall Street Journal, NBCI, FrontiersIn 

Photograph: Pinterest