Hi, my name is Stephanie, and today I want to talk to you about how technology and social
media might be really bad for you as an autistic
person because of potential negative effects on
mental health.
This is actually a slightly adjusted version of a research paper I made for one of my classes
in school.
Thank you so much to my patrons for voting on this video topic.
Now, as I did mention,
this was originally a paper specifically written for school, so it does focus a lot on the
mental health aspect, but I think that it's highly
relevant for autistic people, and I have made some adjustments to help kind of bring that
back into, maybe, the theme.
You might notice from our education so far on this
channel why some of these aspects are extremely important for autistic people, specifically,
as well.
In her article, “What Makes Technology Good or Bad for Us?,” Jenna Clark discusses the
controversy and conflicting reports around technology, with a focus on its use for social
purposes.
The author notes that studies having conflicting results does not indicate a correct or incorrect
conclusion, but that the way technology is used is nuanced, implying that both can be
right at the same time, depending on the situation.
Clark suggests that using technology as a vehicle for actual in-person socialization
can be helpful, but many aspects of how people actually use things like social media can
be detrimental to their mental health and relationships.
In 1984, “only 8% of US households owned a personal computer,” but in 2018, less
than three decades later, “2.65 billion people in the world used social media.”.
The use of technology has created jobs that never previously existed, made work from any
location possible, and let families separated by a few streets to entire oceans be able
to talk and see each other’s faces in real-time.
People seem to be more connected than ever before, but the innovation meant to make the
world into one giant community may be having a negative, possibly damaging, effect on its
users.
Along with the rise in technology use and dependence has come a concerning increase
in mental health issues, especially in the younger generations.
Individuals, including autistic people, should limit their use of technology-mediated interaction
and strive to increase in-person socialization to avoid negative effects to mental health
and relationships.
The mental health of individuals can have a direct impact on society overall.
According to Encyclopaedia Britannica, the term, “mental health,” encompasses “rehabilitation
of the mentally disturbed, prevention of mental disorder, reduction of tension in a stressful
world, and attainment of a state of well-being in which the individual functions at a level
consistent with his or her mental potential.”
Attaining a state of well-being in which an individual is capable of functioning at one’s
mental potential is arguably imperative to the overall state of society.
Even if one person’s happiness or well-being does not appear to impact many others, numbers
say otherwise.
According to Investing in Mental Health, over half of the economic cost of productivity
loss in America is attributed to mental illness, and just from 1993 to 1999, job absences arising
from psychological reasons quadrupled in Canada.
Productivity is just one part of the cost: “the economic impacts of mental illness
include its effects on personal income, the ability of the persons with mental disorders
or their caregivers to work and make productive contributions to the national economy, as
well as the utilization of treatment and support services.”
With mental health being such an important aspect, attention has turned to the increasing
amount of mental health issues affecting people today.
Rising numbers of mental health issues and the possible link to social media and technology
use has caused concern.
One study completed in 2017 found that the number of young adults that reported experiencing
“serious psychological distress” increased 71% compared to 2008, while reports by older
adults decreased.
Specifically, depression has been a notable mental illness with soaring rates of prevalence.
An article written for Scientific American Mind, states that “in 2014 psychologist
Jean M. Twenge analyzed data from nearly seven million teenagers and adults across the US
and found that more people reported symptoms of depression in recent years than they did
in the 1980s.”
This alarming decline of mental health seen in young adults appears to coincide with the
rise of technology use and social media, often used frequently by younger generations.
Researchers from the aforementioned 2017 study stated, “the increase in adolescent major
depressive episode began after 2011, concurrent with the increased ownership of smartphones
and a concomitant increase in digital media time in this age group.”
These findings suggest strong evidence for the correlation between mental health decline
and the use of technology-mediated interaction.
The link between poorer mental health and social media may be explained by some of the
aspects of social media.
Much of the reason that heightened technology use, especially that of social media, appears
to be causing poorer mental health has to do with the human connection and how this
dynamic interacts with online platform use.
Kardaras notes in his article that, “online socializing may be interfering with our face-to-face
encounters,” which can be dangerous as individuals “can get physically and psychologically
ill without real human contact.”
Using technology as a way socialize from afar appears to be depriving people, especially
adolescents and young adults, of actual social connections.
Technology might be capable of facilitating communication across the world, but users
often tend to use these online platforms in ways that are harmful.
Clark notes that “passively scrolling through your Facebook feed without interacting with
people has been linked to decreased well-being and increased depression post-Facebook use,”
calling this passive and shallow connection to others “social snacking.”
Another problem arises from a part of the social aspect of human nature: comparison.
What people post online and what their day-to-day life actually looks like are almost always
very different: “when we compare our messy lived experiences to others’ curated self-presentations,
we are likely to suffer from lowered self-esteem, happiness, and well-being.”
The negative effects on mental health can be confusing for those using the platform
as a means of connection.
Some people report mixed feelings regarding the concept of being more connected via social
media and its effect on their mental health.
This is the case for one YouTube commenter, who shared his experience with social media
and his feelings regarding it: For me, social media generally seems to augment
the feelings that I already have about my social life.
Lately, I've been spending a lot of time on Reddit (like 3 to 4 hours at a time) just
scrolling, which has been quite a time waster and I feel pretty depressed after getting
off of it.
On the whole, social media makes me more connected and "aware" of the hive mind, but I wouldn't
call it good for me by any means, except generally being up to date on current events.
If anything, it's added to my feelings of nihilism and cynicism for humanity.
Though the commenter, Wallace, feels more aware of current events, he reports increased
feelings regarding his social life, which he implied in a negative manner.
In fact, he also mentions trying to be a part of a community of online gamers based on his
interests, but found “the community as a whole pretty toxic,” as well as having rid
himself of Facebook due to passive interaction, saying, “I’m still quite lonely without
it, but I’m not reminded of other peoples’ lives quite as much.”
For those like Wallace, social media can be a painful source of social comparison while
anticipating an increase in social interaction.
Instead of receiving necessary and important human connection, Wallace and others are met
with a magnifying glass placed over their seemingly inadequate social lives, compounding
the existing problem.
The mixed messages of what should be and what people are actually experiencing on social
media extends to the effect social media has on romantic relationships as well.
Social media, marketed as a way to create and maintain relationships from anywhere in
the world, may not always have the intended effect, especially regarding romantic relationships.
Technology can serve to cause problems rather than facilitate connection.
A 2014 poll taken by Pew Research Center found that about one fourth of cell phone users
in romantic relationships “found their partner too distracted by their cell phones,” and
about “1 in 10 had argued with a partner about excessive screen time.”
Additionally, technology can facilitate relationships that advance quickly, or create romantic relationships
outside of an existing committed partnership.
A 2015 study found that “27% of teenagers with relationship experience say social media
makes them feel jealous or unsure about their relationship.”
Even when not directly impacting romantic relationships, the public nature of sharing
about one’s romantic relationship on social media makes many teen users feel that “too
many people can see what’s happening in their relationship on social media.”
When relationships end, unfortunately, social media and other technology can turn into an
ugly place and a direct cause of damaged mental health.
The 2015 study found that “22% of teens had a partner use the internet or a cellphone
to call them names, put them down, or say really mean things to them,” and 15% “report
that a current or former partner spread rumors about them using digital platforms.”
Not only does social media affect relationships, but it has been shown to directly affect the
brain, as well.
Technology and social media use can cause issues in the brain and functioning.
One frequently noted way that technology use has affected younger generations is poorer
attention spans.
A study published in 2018 found that “there was a robust association between adolescents’
reported daily digital technology usage and sameday symptoms of ADHD and conduct disorder.”
Additionally, researchers found that “higher levels of digital technology usage during
early adolescence predicted poor self-regulation and increases in conduct problems.”
The researchers did place importance on acknowledging that these findings could be causal or that
adolescents with pre-existing mental health problems are more susceptible to technology
over use and the subsequent consequences, which could result in an unpleasant cycle.
Not only has a link been found between technology and social media use causing issues with attention
span and conduct, some research suggests that “engaging in multi‐tasking via digital
media does not improve our multi‐tasking performance in other settings – and in fact
seems to decrease this cognitive capacity.”
While a decrease in the ability to engage in real-life multitasking is certainly a concern,
another finding regarding brain responses to social media engagement is arguably worse
in terms of mental health.
One study mentioned in an article by Beres found that the part of the brain stimulated
when a person engages in drugs and gambling is also activated when teenagers and their
friends receive likes on their online posts, which may cause users to expect or feel as
though they need this stimulation to feel happy.
Despite the potential negative effects on the brain, some believe that social media
can be a great option for those who are lonely.
Proponents of social media and technology use argue that those with poor social skills
or access to others are made less lonely by utilizing these tools.
Many individuals have limited access to the public, whether due to illness, disorders,
or simply transportation.
Others with less-than-great social skills and social anxieties may find comfort in being
able to connect with people online.
One study by Markovitzky, et al. found that socially anxious individuals who utilized
chat to interact with someone before a face-to-face interaction reported less social anxiety in
that interaction, but no data in the study suggests whether this would apply in a more
generalized sense.
While this could be a useful way of helping socially anxious individuals take steps into
face-to-face interactions with set people, many people use the internet as a substitute
for socializing in person instead of a stepping-stone toward it.
A 2003 study found that “lonely and depressed individuals may develop a preference for online
social interaction, which, in turn, leads to negative outcomes associated with their
Internet use.”
Lonely individuals using social media as a way to combat loneliness are likely to spiral
into a vicious cycle that causes them to become more isolated, meaning a temporary relief
of perceived loneliness would be bought at the price of a longer term negative impact
of mental health.
Those on the autism spectrum are of particular interest in this area, as they tend to have
less social skills and therefore a higher dependence on technology and social media.
Autistic individuals are at a specifically high risk for the noted negative effects of
social media and technology.
Those with ASD are known to have many comorbid conditions.
One study indicated 77% of their participants with ASD had other psychiatric diagnoses or
issues.
With this level of risk, autistic individuals need to be mindful of things that might contribute
to poor mental health.
The 2018 study that pointed to technology use and its correlation to higher rates of
poorer self-regulation should be of special concern, as autistic individuals have a great
deal of trouble with self-regulation and executive functioning as it is.
A study done by Wright that focused on cyber victimization of ASD adolescents found that
parent mediation and perceived social support greatly reduced associated depression.
Additionally, the same study followed up a year later and found the findings remained
consistent.
Clearly, autistic individuals, despite being more prone to avoiding social situations due
to poorer social skills, are at more risk for the negative effects of technology.
Avoiding the negative effects of social media and technology use and improving in-person
social connections for mental wellbeing could be achieved in many different ways.
An obvious approach would be to simply limit the amount of time spent on social media.
Psychiatrist Dr. Fornari agrees: “Physicians need to counsel parents to monitor and limit
smartphone use, especially on social media.”
In fact, one study set out to see if limited social media would, indeed, lead to better
mental health.
According to the study’s lead author, “using less social media than you normally would
leads to significant decreases in both depression and loneliness,” and added that “these
effects are particularly pronounced for folks who were more depressed.”
As for those who have difficulty socializing other than social media, community meetings
or groups could be a great option, especially overseen and operated by a therapist.
Such groups could work with the community to help aid individuals in transportation
and overcoming other accessibility barriers.
For those who have little connection other than online, already-existing community programs
can help facilitate relationships face-to-face based on similar interests, including sports
and after-school programs.
Taking the extra step to make a goal of in-person socialization with friends or family may also
be a viable option for many to help combat the issues discussed in this video.
Within the last few decades, technology use has skyrocketed.
Social media platforms have been created and flourish with millions of users.
People all across the world are capable of being in contact with one another.
However, the use of this technology has become nearly compulsory and the detrimental effects
on mental health have become apparent.
Not only does mental health affect one’s quality of life, but it can have a greater
effect on society through loss of productivity, strain on family, medical costs, and more.
Technology may be a great tool to share ideas or to get in contact with someone otherwise
unreachable, but using it as a substitute for genuine, face-to-face interaction and
socialization is causing significant harm.
Reducing the amount of time spent using technology, especially social media, can combat the rampant
issue of poor mental health.
In light of recent world events, which have required millions of people to be quarantined,
plenty of which are isolated, more research should be done on the effect of this new forced
dependency on social media to socialize has created.
Specifically, how one can meet the need of socialization without risking one's life,
as well as how effective video calls are in substitution of actual in-person interaction.
Mental health is a serious problem and it should be a high priority.
Taking measures to retain that human connection over communication via technology is imperative.
I know this video was a bit different than my normal style.
I did have to meet certain requirements within my research paper, and it was set up to be
also an argumentative paper, where usually my videos, I'll try to give more time to each
side and such, this was set up specifically to make an argument,
but one that I really do feel is quite valid, and obviously is research based.
I think this is something we should consider.
As a community, I do feel that a lot of autistic people do feel more connected because they're
finding more people like them online, but I do think we need to be very careful
because of the quick dependence we tend to make to the strangers on the internet and
how this is very likely actually negatively impacting our mental health.
Anyway, I am interested in your thoughts.
So, if you enjoyed this video, go ahead and hit that like button
and let me know all of your thoughts in the comments below.
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Thank you so much for watching.
I hope you have a wonderful week, and I'll see you in my next video.
Bye!