There are about 50 negative effects related to the use of social media, and not all related only to mental health.
To identify them an Australian research, from the University of Technology Sydney, published in the Journal of Global Information Management.
For the study, the research team looked at more than 50 research articles published between 2003 and 2018. In 2003, social media was still in its infancy and Facebook wouldn't be created for a year.
One of the first social networks, MySpace, was founded in that very year.
Scholars report as many as 46 harmful effects related to the use of sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. These include anxiety, depression, harassment, suicide incitement, cyberstalking, delinquency, jealousy, information overload, and a lack of online security. But also privacy violation, deception, conflict with others and a greater propensity for taking financial risks.
Overall, issues related to social media use range from physical and mental health issues to negative impacts on work and academic performance, as well as security and privacy issues.
Researchers are currently studying the factors that influence social media addiction and the strategies people use to regulate their behavior.
The next step will be to try to develop and test applications, design features and other solutions that can reduce the negative effects.
