Cell phones have become a big thing within the past couple of years. Everyone can be seen with one in their hand and most people are always on them. Mental health has also become a bigger thing within the past years. The more someone is on their phone, the more they are likely to be in the loop of new and popular things. Notifications fill people with a sense of happiness to be getting action, but also with a sense or urgency to pick up the phone and be kept in the loop. Social media, although very easy to get onto, has proven to be not so good, because people tend to compare themselves with influencers they see online. Platforms from all across the world can be addictive to teenagers, and they are forced to rely on these platforms and their phones more often. It makes connecting with people more difficult in person since people make more friends online, but it doesn’t solve the issue of loneliness within people. People need real connection with others, and that issue is not simply solved over a screen. We now have more technology and ways to test people accurately to check their state of wellbeing. The impact with the amount of screen time people have could be positive, negative, or even neutral. Both have recently become a part of everyone’s everyday lives, so could they have an impact?
Sophomore Lilly Gibson said she believes that it has a positive impact on her. “I believe that it is mostly positive, but the way that social media depicts some things definitely takes a toll.” Social media is known for making things look better than they are, making peoples bars higher and more difficult to fit into.
Kaitlyn Gallagher said that she believes she is on her phone an average amount of time. “Being on it less affects me in a positive way because my eyes aren’t always locked onto a screen. I have time to do stuff, like schoolwork, and I’m not always stressing about the new biggest trend.”
In conclusion, the amount of time on someone’s phone doesn’t always have to be negative. It depends on the person and how they spend their time, and what they perceive as good or bad.
For more information, go to https://www.columbiapsychiatry.org/research/research-areas/child-and-adolescent-psychiatry/sultan-lab-mental-health-informatics/research-areas/smartphones-social-media-and-their-impact-mental-health .
