The Overseas Situation Report Friday 8 October 2021
by Mike Evans
“When it comes to social media, there are just times I turn off the world, you know. There are just sometimes you have to give yourself space to be quiet, which means you’ve got to set those phones down.”
– Michelle Obama
In this report we are looking at the impact that covid 19 has had and continues to have on the population around the world. There are differing reasons behind many of the issues that the pandemic has brought to different countries but overall the vast majority of countries have seen one thing in common. Worldwide, statistics suggest mental health has declined since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Is social media partly to blame?
On a global scale, social media can be a way for people to gather information, share ideas, and reach out to others facing similar challenges. It can also be an effective platform to relay information quickly during a national or worldwide crisis.
This global reach is what has made social media a critical communication platform during the COVID-19 pandemic.
As government health organizations used it to relay recent findings on prevention and treatment, social media became more than a place to post the latest vacation photos — it became a hub of pandemic-related information.
But has the use of social media during the pandemic negatively impacted mental health and well-being? Or has it had the opposite effect?
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), mental health conditions are on the rise. Data show that around 20% of children and adolescents worldwide live with a mental health condition. Moreover, suicide is the second leading cause of death in 15–29-year-olds.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, a report published by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that of the adults surveyed in the United States: 31% reported symptoms of anxiety or depression, 13% reported having started or increased substance use, 26% reported experiencing stress-related symptoms, 11% reported having suicidal thoughts suggests that pandemic-related mental health challenges have impacted people differently, with some racial and ethnic groups disproportionately affected by pandemic stress. In particular, Hispanic adults reported experiencing the highest level of psychosocial stress in relation to food shortages and insecure housing at the start of the pandemic.
A research report published in Frontiers in Psychology suggests that there is an association between pandemic threats and extensive anxiety and concern among the public.
Scientists explain that some anxiety about personal safety and health during a widespread disease outbreak can help promote healthy behaviour, including hand-washing and social distancing. However, in some people, anxiety can become overwhelming and cause harm.
Social media use has been on the rise since its debut in 1995. As it has grown, more people have started using it as a news source. According to a Pew Research Center survey conducted between August 31 and September 7, 2020, about 53% of adults in the U.S. get their news from social media.This report indicates that social media can help effectively communicate health information to a global audience during a public health crisis. However, the information shared on these platforms can sometimes be inaccurate or misleading.
For example, one research review published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research looked at social media posts before March 2019 and found that Twitter contained the most health misinformation — mostly about smoking products and drugs.
According to one study, attempts to reduce the spread of misinformation by fact-checking and flagging posts with inaccuracies may help reduce the influence of false information for some people.
Still, there is ongoing debate on whether social media content regulation may increase mistrust and promote more social media posts reflecting inaccurate information.
Because the COVID-19 pandemic emerged recently, scientists are only beginning to understand the role of social media on users’ mental health.
For instance, using questionnaires, researchers in China interviewed college students from March 24 to April 1, 2020, to determine whether social media harmed mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results indicate a link between higher use of social media and an increased risk of depression. Furthermore, the authors suggest that exposure to negative reports and posts may contribute to the risk of depression in some people. Additionally, according to a study that appears in the journal Globalization and Health, there is increasing evidence that endless news feeds reporting SARS-CoV-2 infection rates and COVID-19 death rates could influence the mental health of some individuals.
According to one Lifestyle coach, Lee Chambers who is a British Psychologist the pandemic has had a big effect on people’s mental well being. In a recent interview he said, “While we are all impacted in differing ways by social media consumption, the continual flow of negative and misinformation during the past 18 months have spread fear; the highlighting of social and political issues has reduced optimism; and edited photos and toxically positive content leave no space to feel secure or express negative emotions healthily. Alongside the increased desire for metrics such as likes and comments in these challenging times, it’s likely that social media has exacerbated mental health challenges.”
He also explained that social media keeps people connected to friends and family, especially during social distancing with limited physical interactions. Yet, this increased use may have amplified social anxiety and challenges with perfectionism and comparison for some people.
Research published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research suggests that psychosocial expressions have significantly increased during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This means that more people are expressing their emotions, both positive and negative, and garnering support from others. As a result, the stigma surrounding mental health conditions may be decreasing.
According to Prof. Steven C. Hayes, Foundation Professor of Psychology at the University of Nevada, Reno, who developed the Relational Frame Theory and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, told Medical News Today, “We know that there are toxic processes that produce particular challenges for people: exposure to physical and psychological pain; a comparison with others and judgment; entanglement with self-judgment.”Prof. Hayes noted that the COVID-19 pandemic exploded the idea that mental health conditions only affect certain individuals.
With emerging research suggesting social media may impact the mental health of some users, some platforms have begun to initiate positive changes. For example, on September 14, 2021, the social media platform TikTok announced new features for its users to help provide resources for suicide prevention.
But can they do more?
According to Chambers: “Social media platforms have a key role to play in how their products impact the mental health and well-being of their users. There are many aspects where this can be achieved. However, the challenge is that using most of these will decrease addictiveness, engagement, and time spent. This often goes against the aims of the platform itself.”
He suggests that social media platforms could consider improvements to build in mental well-being protection, including:
- limiting news feed length
- changing the way notifications are triggered
- labeling altered images
- introducing stronger regulation and monitoring of content designed to harm
- implementing suggestions that users take a break
- signposting to evidence-based resources and support on posts that may be triggering
- ensuring clearer guidelines and more ability for users to easily control sensitive content.
According to Chambers, “when it comes to using social media, both moderation of time and content consumed and intentionality play a significant part in garnering the benefits and reducing the downsides.” He suggests that having a “digital sunset” before retiring for the night can help ensure anxiety will not impact sleep. In addition, having a social media-free day can positively affect mental well-being.
The irony of all this is that we are all using social media to get our messages across and at Safe Communities we are well aware of the impact that social media has had on people during the pandemic and as we start to see the way out we all hope that the social media platforms will get back to what they were invented for in the first place.
With that until the next time, Stay Safe.
Total Cases Worldwide – 237,221,331
Total Deaths Worldwide – 4,843,447
Total Recovered Worldwide – 214,364,486
Total Active Cases Worldwide – 18,013,398 (7.6 % of the total cases)
Total Closed Cases Worldwide – 219,207,933
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
Other Resources:
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles