Tel Aviv: While many studies have found a correlation between the use Social media and related various features mental health, until now, it has been challenging to examine whether social media was the cause of poor mental health. Using a novel research method, a study led by researchers from Tel Aviv University, the MIT Sloan School of Management, and Bocconi University reveals new findings about negative affect. Facebook On the mental health of American college students.
The study was based on data that dates back to the time Facebook arrived at Harvard University in 2004 and before it took the internet by storm. Facebook was initially only accessible to Harvard students who had a Harvard email address. Spreading rapidly to other colleges in the US and abroad, the network was made available to the public in the US and beyond in September 2006. The researchers were able to analyze the impact of social media use by comparing colleges with access to the platform. Which colleges have not done. Findings show an increase in the number of students reporting seriousness Depression And worry (7 percent and 20 percent respectively).
The study was led by Tel Aviv University’s Berglas School of Economics, Dr. Roy Levy, MIT Sloan School of Management Professor Alexei Makarin and Bocconi University Professor Luca Braghieri did. The paper is forthcoming in the scientific journal American Economic Review and was awarded a prize at the 2022 Economic Society European Meeting (ESEM).
“Over the past fifteen years, mental health trends among adolescents and young adults in the United States have deteriorated significantly. Two phenomena may be related,” says Professor Bragheri.
Social media vs social context
TAU’s Dr. According to Levy notes, “In examining potential mechanisms, it was hypothesized that unfavorable social comparisons may explain the observed effects and that students more sensitive to such comparisons were more likely to experience negative effects.”
To test this interpretation, the team examined additional data from the NCHA. They found, for example, a greater negative impact on the mental health of students who lived off campus and were consequently less involved in social activities, and a greater negative impact on students with credit card debt who networked with their supposedly wealthy peers. had seen .
Evidence was also found that Facebook changed students’ beliefs about their peers,” adds Levy. “More students believed that other people consumed more alcohol, although there was no significant change in alcohol consumption.”
The study drew on data from two separate datasets: the introduction of Facebook at 775 American colleges and specific dates at National Colleges. Health assessment (NCHA), a periodic survey of American colleges.
The researchers created an index based on 15 related questions in the NCHA, which asked students about their mental health in the past year. A statistically significant worsening of mental health symptoms, especially depression and anxiety, was observed after the advent of Facebook:
- There was a 7 percent increase in the number of students who reported suffering from depression at least once in the previous year so severe that it was difficult for them to function.
- The number of students reporting anxiety disorders increased by 20 percent
- A 2 percent increase in the number of students expected to experience moderate to severe depression
- A 3 percent increase in the number of students experiencing impairment in their academic performance due to depression or anxiety
