Matthew Warner
Psytext
Social media is a growing communication method that is used by political figures, celebrities, business, entrepreneurs and private individuals alike. Anyone can have some type of social media account and in some cases, there are animals, pets and companies that have accounts of the own. The concept of social media rose in the mid to late 90’s around the same time the internet was made available to the general public. It began with chat rooms that allowed individual users to create accounts based on their personal data. It grew and evolved into more intricate platforms that allow user to share content, share ideas and meet new people.
Creating this form of dialogue allows marketing campaigns to be created that only target a specific audience. Companies can create content themselves, or pay the companies or providers to do so. This will lead to more views, likes and or subscribers. Social media is a tool used for many purposes, and it directly affects how others see the world. It allows us to have the ability to communicate with others who we would not have the ability to communicate with under other circumstances, which can lead to various forms of confusion, misunderstanding and or a tunnel/distorted version of reality.
Globalization
Online communication allows society to live in what is considered a globalized environment. This means we can share data, information and communicate with anyone across the entire planet. In any case this can be done very easily. But because we are able to reach others who are so far away, we are also missing many others who cannot be reached to not have the same communication methods. Even though globalization can be derived from the internet, it is still not considered a true format of globalization, because you cannot reach areas that do not have the same connections as yourself or an area that can offer service. A globalized economy has the ability to share resources and information over large distances. It opens doors for employment opportunities, product sales, the sharing of information and data, but it is also a skewed view of reality. This is because it only provides that user with the illusion of being able to reach to world.
The internet is a form of globalized communication, as you are able to connect to those who live very far away, or even on other sides of the planet very easily. But that does not mean that you have access to all of the individuals who are in that location. Essentially what it means is, you have access to whatever servers and platforms that are allowing you to have access to that region. This fact in itself is one of the reasons why social media has been a negative driving force towards emotional stability of its users.
Social Media
Social media allows users to find data relevant to information they have viewed in the past. This algorithm may create a negative differential, but that is because it is providing you with what you have already provided to it itself. It may also be trying to find methods for you to purchase specific products, or visit websites that will ultimately lead you into repeating the same activity. This is a common and acceptable practice.
The ability to communicate with others, also means that you have access to communicate with multiple parties. The ability to communicate with multiple parties on a simple and convenient basis means that you will also be able to disregard said relationships just as easily. This will lead to mood changes in those who have been susceptible to their posts, responses or personal information. The majority of these effects are demonstrated in younger individuals. They can have a misguided or misconstrued understanding of the interface platform, and they can become confused about how to feel about specific media posts.
The detrimental mental aspect with this form of conditioning comes from its repeated usage, in combination with the marketing tools that are used to reach their intended audience. The rise of smart devices has also limited the requirements for its users to understand basic skills like typing, photography, or some time even using a computer mouse. This forces them to use and rely solely on one device that is feeding them detrimental information. They may not also have the financial ability to purchase devices that can protect them from negative influences, but still rely on lower quality items for social media and basic communication. They may also not have the ability to understand how to shut off, turn off, limit and or isolate negative influences that may be affecting their mood, or emotional state. There was a study conducted by Philip Ozimek and Hans-Werner Bierhoff on SNS (Social Networking System) that demonstrates how these negative elements alter mood, and overall lower self-esteem (Ozimek & Bierhoff, 2020). In order for positive changes to be made, understanding what these changes are plays a crucial role. The negative feelings generated by social media algorithms unfortunately is also associated with that of the standard marketing tools. This can also be related to modeling, and or magazines that depict attractive people in specific fashions to sell products. Force feeding this rhetoric to developing you that do not understand what is transpiring, will ultimately lead to negative emotions, feelings and actions that could have been avoided with proper understanding. (Valkenburg, Koutamanis & Vossen, 2017).
The public usage of the internet or communication networks have been around since the late 90s. Taking the dangers and positive values into account is something that needs to be taught and developed through understanding what actually creates the tools that we know and love. This can come from educational facilities, but should also be taught at home. There are several different basic ideas and forms of methodology that can be put in place when using the internet or any form of communication network. Keeping your personal information to yourself , understanding what trusted online environments are will also help you make decisions that can protect yourself.
References
Ozimek, & Bierhoff, H.-W. (2020). All my online-friends are better than me - three studies about ability-based comparative social media use, self-esteem, and depressive tendencies. Behaviour & Information Technology, 39(10), 1110–1123. https://doi.org/10.1080/0144929X.2019.1642385
Valkenburg, Koutamanis, M., & Vossen, H. G. (2017). The Concurrent and Longitudinal Relationships between Adolescents’ Use of Social Network Sites and their Social Self-Esteem. Computers in Human Behavior, 76, 35–41.
Love Yourself(ie) to Help Preteens Prevent Social Media From Deflating Self-Worth: New Book Gives Kids, Parents and Educators Needed Resource to Build Preteen Self-Esteem. (2016). PR Newswire.
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