Rodyn Rostam / Staff Reporter
Anyone born after 1995 won’t remember life before the Internet. Everyone now depends on their smartphones for work, school, communication, and personal and social lives.
A study from Kepios shows that there are 4.74 billion social media users around the world as of October 2022, equating to 59.3 percent of the global population, and with 190 million new users joining social media this past year, which is a staggering amount.
Social Media has become a significant part of our daily lives, and it is having an impact on today’s society. Social media platforms were designed to hold users’ attention for as long as possible.
People have been able to connect with others share their thoughts, emotions, and experiences. It provides a level of entertainment, shopping, Education, and many businesses found it as a useful asset for marketing and promotion.
However too much use of social media even just browsing can be unhealthy and has been linked to a feeling of having less satisfaction with life. Studies have suggested that it can lead to ADHD symptoms, depression, anxiety, sleep deprivation, and Diminishes Understanding and Thoughtfulness. Cyberbullying has also been a big problem for many teens around the world, occurring whenever threats or comments are made online to hurt others, whether it’s intentional or unintentional. The rise of Fake news is also a vital problem.
According to the latest data from Global WebIndex the average time spent on social media worldwide is two hours and 27 minutes, a day in 2022.
Experts stated the average person should spend less than 30 minutes a day, even though it seems nearly impossible for some people.
An experiment was done on a Gleneagle student. On Instagram the student spends a daily average of 5 hours 8 mins, and 1 hour 58 mins on YouTube. Spends a total of 7 hours 6 mins on social media alone.
it’s important to understand the impact it’s made and how it could affect the future.
“The future is already here”
In a TEDx video titled Leading in the Digital Era! Which was recorded at Gleneagle earlier this year. Speaker Samuel Rostam quoted “Every single one of us literally are using digital devices almost on a daily basis.” he further says, “we have all this at our disposal and somehow we are shocked on how to deal with it how do we control our screen time and how do we get to use these devices in an effective way not just for entertainment but also for education purposes.” “All these digital footprints that are around us we may sometimes need to take actions on it we have to be aware of what are the opportunities and what are the challenges cybercrime, cyber bullying the list goes on and on.”
Social media has its ups and downs, it’s good to control the amount you spent on it so you can regulate your time for a better use of something more beneficial.
Sources:
Social media has changed the lives of modern society
Global social media statistics research summary 2022
Social media bad for teens’ mental health
How social media has changed our world
Disadvantages of Social Networking: Surprising Insights from Teens
Global Social Media Statistics
Video: Leading in the Digital Era! | Samuel Rostam | TEDxGleneagleSecondary
Images:
Most popular social networks worldwide
Social Media users vs Total Population
Average time spent on Social Media (2012 – 2022)
Feature Image by: Rodyn Rostam