Social media's contribution to depression among selected filipino youth by Julie Bedas

UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES CEBU Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication

Julie Marie R. Bedas Junmari Chevyn A. Hencianos

Social Mediaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Contribution to Depression Among Selected Filipino Youth

Thesis Adviser: Associate Professor Belinda F. Espiritu, PhD Mass Communication Program, Arts and Humanities Cluster University of the Philippines Cebu

Date of Submission June 8, 2016

Permission is given for the following people to have access to this thesis: Available to the general public

Yes

Available only after consultation with author/thesis adviser

Available only to those bound by confidentiality agreement

Studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; signatures: 1. 2. Signature of thesis adviser:

SOCIAL MEDIAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S CONTRIBUTION TO DEPRESSION AMONG SELECTED FILIPINO YOUTH

JULIE MARIE R. BEDAS JUNMARI CHEVYN A. HENCIANOS

Submitted to the ARTS AND HUMANITIES CLUSTER University of the Philippines Cebu In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of

BACHELOR OF ARTS IN MASS COMMUNICATION

June 2016

SOCIAL MEDIAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S CONTRIBUTION TO DEPRESSION AMONG SELECTED FILIPINO YOUTH

By JULIE MARIE R. BEDAS JUNMARI CHEVYN A. HENCIANOS

has been accepted for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication by

Associate Professor Belinda F. Espiritu, Ph.D. Adviser

Assistant Professor,

Guidance Services Specialist,

Ian Vincent C. Manticajon, LLB.

Annabelle G. Maglasang, MA

Panelist

and approved for the University of the Philippines Cebu Mass Communication Program by

Assistant Professor Jocelyn C. Pinzon, Ph.D. Chair, Arts and Humanities Cluster

Atty. Liza D. Corro, BA, LLB. Acting Dean/Chancellor, UP Cebu

iii

BIOGRAPHICAL DATA

PERSONAL DATA Name

Julie Marie R. Bedas

Permanent Address

Verie Hills Subdivision, White Rose, Yati, Lilo-an, Cebu, 6002

Telephone Number

263-7618

Date & Place of Birth

18 July 1995, Cebu City

EDUCATION Secondary Level

3rd Achiever, Consolacion National High School, Consolacion, Cebu

Primary Level

8th Honor, Yati Elementary School, Lilo-an, Cebu

ORGANIZATIONS

Core Mover, Rappler Contributor, Tug-ani Member, CommUP Member, PRIMO

WORK EXPERIENCE

Content Writer, Bizceed International Inc., June 2015-present Reporter, DYHP-RMN Cebu 612, April-May 2014

ACHIEVEMENTS

College Scholar: 1st Semester, AY 2015-2016 College Scholar: 2nd Semester, AY 2014-2015 College Scholar: 1st and 2nd Semesters, AY 2013-2014 College Scholar: 1st Semester, AY 2012-2013

BIOGRAPHICAL DATA

PERSONAL DATA Name

JunmariChevyn A. Hencianos

Permanent Address

Capitol Valley, Dao, Tagbilaran City, Bohol, 6300

Telephone Number

+639253002107

Date & Place of Birth

18 July 1995, Bohol

EDUCATION Secondary Level

University of Bohol, Tagbilaran City, Bohol

Primary Level

Holy Spirit School, Tagbilaran City, Bohol

ORGANIZATIONS

Member, CommUP Member, PRIMO

WORK EXPERIENCE

Intern, Third Civil Relations Group, June-July 2015 Intern, International Organization for Migration, April-May 2014

ACHIEVEMENTS

College Scholar: 1st Semester, AY 2013-2014

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

First, we would like to thank the Almighty God above for blessing us and watching over us through the tedious process of thesis-making. Thank you for keeping us healthy despite the abuses we make on our bodies and for enlightening our minds on what content to write for this study. We would like to thank our dedicated thesis adviser Miss Belinda Espiritu for poring over this thesis for countless hours so that we may improve it to the best of its potential. Thank you as well to our respected panelists Miss Annabelle Maglasang and Sir Ian Manticajon for giving us your time and sharing useful insights about our topic. Thank you to our brilliant video animator Sir Dexter Besa who remains humble despite his many talents in life. Kudos to you Sir Dex! From the bottom of our hearts we would like to thank our respective families for the utmost support they have given throughout. Especially to our parents Myrna and Pablito Bedas and Rose Marie and Segundino Hencianos. Each of you gave us the strength to go on even on nights that we didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t sleep and on days that we walked like zombies in the campus. The emotional rapport and the financial assistance youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve given were necessary for the completion of this thesis. To BJ Hencianos, we know youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re looking over your sister from up there. Thank you as well to John Isaac I. Comabig for helping in any way that he can, from providing survey respondents to lending his laptop. To the BAI barkadahan, thank you for making us laugh during times that we wanted to cry. To all the respondents and informants of this thesis, thank you for giving us your time. This research would not have been possible without all of you! To all those mentioned, this thesis is as much yours as it is ours. Our sincerest gratitude goes out to each of you!

DEDICATION

For all those, struggling to fit in.

vii

ABSTRACT

Bedas, J.M. &Hencianos, J.C. (2016).Social Media’s Contribution to Depression Among Selected Filipino Youth, Unpublished Undergraduate Thesis, University of the Philippines Cebu.

In the age of “hashtags”, “likes” and “follows”, there are consequences both positive and negative that we can gather from the social media platform. For one, many studies have linked social media with depression. In this light, this research examines social media’s contribution to depression on the youth particularly in the Philippine setting, one of the top countries with the most social media use and a recent increase of incidences of suicide. The theories Uses and Gratifications, Dependency Theory and Social Information Processing were used as the framework of the study. Both quantitative and qualitative research methods were used to gather data, including survey, focus group discussions, focus interviews and key-informant interviews. The results of the research affirmed the existence of the phenomenon of social media depression. Informants of this study both without social media depression and with social media depression acknowledge that social media depression is real both from observations and personal experience. The key informant psychologists also gave insights on the relation between social media and depression. The researchers aimed to raise awareness by producing an animated video detailing the findings of this thesis, and the preventive measures to be taken.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page Public Access Page

Title Page

Approval Sheet

iii

Biographical Data

Acknowledgment

Dedication

vii

Abstract

viii

Table of Contents

List of Figures

xiii

List of Matrices

xiv

List of Tables

INTRODUCTION A. Background and Rationale

1 1

1. Social Media and the Youth

2. Social Media Depression among the Youth

3. Social Media Depression in the Philippine Setting

B. Statement of the Problem and Objectives

C. Significance of the Study

D. Scope and Limitations

II.

III.

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE A. Social Media Consumption

B. Social Media as Source of Depression

C. Factors that Make Social Media Depressing

D. Negative Effects of Social Media on a Userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Mentality

E. Synthesis

FRAMEWORK OF THE STUDY A. Theoretical Framework

IV.

26 27

1. Uses and Gratifications Theory

2. Dependency Theory

3. Social Information Processing (SIP) Theory

4. Integration of the Theories

B. Conceptual Framework

C. Operational Framework

D. Definition of Terms

METHODS AND PROCEDURES

A. Research Design and Methods

1. Research Design

2. Research Methods

B. Concepts and Indicators

C. Units of Analysis and Sampling

D. Data Gathering Procedure

E. Research Instruments

F. Data Analysis Methods

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS 1. Video Infographic Production A. Social Media Consumption Patterns among Selected Filipino Youth

58 58 59

1. Profile of Survey Respondents

2. Social Media Use

3. Motivations of Use

B. Views on Social Media Use as a Source of Depression

1. Attitude towards Social Media Depression

2. Views on Social Media Depression

C. Factors that Make Social Media Depressing to Some Youth Users

1. Envy

2. Number of Likes, Comments, Followers, etc.

3. Seen or Ignored Message/s

4. Negative Content

5. Inner Psycho-emotional Conditions

D. Negative Effects of Social Media on a Userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Mentality Contributing to

Depression 1. Addiction and Dependency

2. Feelings of Isolation and Lack of Interaction

3. High Expectations

102

4. Technical Factors

104

5. Cyberbullying

106

6. Prevention

108

E. Data Discussion

VI.

114

1. In Relation to the Framework of the Study

114

2. In Relation to Related Studies

116

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS A. Summary of Findings 1. Social Media Consumption Patterns among Selected Filipino

120 121 121

Youth 2. Views on Social Media Use as a Source of Depression

122

3. Factors that Make Social Media Depressing to Some Youth

123

Users 4. Negative Effects of Social Media on a Userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Mentality

124

Contributing to Depression B. Conclusion

VII.

IMPLICATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

126

128

A. Theoretical Issues

128

B. Methodological Issues

130

C. Practical Issues

131

BIBLIOGRAPHY

134

xii

APPENDICES a. Survey Questionnaire b. FGD/FI Guide Questions c. Key Informant Guide Questions d. Beck’s Depression Inventory Scoring Instructions e. FGD Informants Consent Form f.

Video Output Script

LIST OF FIGURES Number

Title

Page

Theoretical Model of the Study

Conceptual Model of the Study

Operational Model of the Study

Respondents’ Age Composition

Respondents’ Gender Composition

Respondents’ Educational Attainment/Occupation

Frequency Distribution of Respondents According to Residence

Social Media Accounts

Frequency Distribution of Respondents According to their Time for Logging In

Type of Access

Type of Use

Reasons for Social Media Use

Answers on Social Media as Cause of Depression

xiii

Answers on Newsfeed Content as Source of Depression

Answers on Happy Posts as Cause of Sadness

Answers on Achievements of Others and Comparison as Cause of Sadness

Answers on Small Likes, Comments, and Shares as Cause of Sadness

Answers on Negative Comments as Cause of Depression

Answers on Which Situations can Make Respondents Sad

LIST OF MATRICES Number

Title

Page

Concepts, Indicators, Variables and Measures

Youthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Awareness of Social Media Depression

Youthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s construction of social media depression

Views on Envy as a Factor Causing Social Media Depression

Views on Likes, Comments, Follows, etc. as a Factor Causing Social Media Depression

Seen or Ignored Message/s as a Factor Causing Social Media Depression

Negative Content as Factor Causing Social Media Depression

Inner Psycho-emotional Conditions as a Factor Causing Social Media Depression

Addiction and Dependency as Indirect Factor of Social Media Depression

Feelings of Isolation and Lack of Interaction as Indirect Factor of Social Media Depression

100

High Expectations as Indirect Factor of Social Media Depression

103

Technical Factors as Indirect Factor of Social Media Depression

105

xiv

Cyberbullying as Indirect Factor for Social Media Depression

107

Ways Social Media Depression Can Be Prevented

110

Raising Awareness on Social Media Depression

113

LIST OF TABLES Number

Title

Page

Thesis Timetable

Line Item Budget

Likert Scale Numerical Value

Time Spent on Social Media

FGD Group without Social Media Depression Personal Profile

FI Group with Social Media Depression Personal Profile

Key Informant Psychologists Personal Profile

Individuals with Social Media Depression BDI Scores

CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION

A. Background and Rationale It is known that most, if not all of us, have profiles in different social media platforms (e.g. Facebook, Instagram, Ask.fm). It is very unusual nowadays for someone to have no existence at all across the virtual world, especially the youth of today who are aptly named as the â&#x20AC;&#x153;technology generationâ&#x20AC;?. When we log in to our accounts, we do so in order to share posts about our lives, and to connect with our loved ones, family, friends and acquaintances. Social media is used by many because it provides pleasure to its users, but did you know that for some individuals, social media can be a very dark place? The researchers aimed to study the trends of social media use among its main users, the youth focusing on the Philippine setting, and observe the factors that make them depressing to some users.

1. Social Media and the Youth The internet has become intertwined with the lives of humans all over the world. In fact around 40% of the whole population in the world today has internet access according to a report by Internet Live Stats, an online platform featuring a live count on statistic in the cyberspace. Social media is gaining widespread popularity all over the world with over 2.13 billion estimated social media users by the year 2016 according to Statista, an online statistics portal. This means this year over 30% of the population already have accounts on different social media sites. Of the 40% that has internet access, 30% out of it are active on social media which means that 3 out of 4 people who use the internet also use social media. 1

What the respondents gathered from these statistics is that social media is now a part of the lives of most modern men and women. The researchers realized this, and therefore aimed to study this phenomenon’s consequences on the youth, the group of people who are most active in social media use. The researchers specifically aimed to study social media’s relation to depression as this medical condition is one of the toughest and most-commonly experienced by the youth. According to Suicide.org, a nonprofit organization catering to suicidal individuals, over 20% of teens experience depression before they reach adulthood. Suicide is the leading cause of death for young people ages 15 to 24. Every 100 minutes, a young individual is taking his or her own life.

2. Social Media Depression among the Youth The suicide of Amanda Todd that happened back in 2012 sparked outrage from netizens all over the world. Todd, 15 from Canada, committed suicide five weeks after she posted a haunting video of herself in Youtube detailing how she was being bullied. Youtube is an online platform that lets its users see and upload videos. She told her story on a series of handwritten notes telling how she was lured by a stranger online to expose her breasts, and it ended up being posted on a Facebook page created by the stranger (Foxnews, 2012). Facebook is the most popular social media site, with over 1.5 billion users worldwide (King, 2015), that lets users post, share, comment and “like” contents (text, pictures, videos) and add friends or follow pages. Since then Todd became depressive and took to alcohol, drugs, sex, self-harm, and finally ended her life. Hannah Smith, a 14-year-old girl from the United Kingdom, committed suicide back in 2013. It was allegedly because of the hateful posts she was receiving on her Ask.fm account. The question and answer website lets users and anonymous individuals 2

post questions or statements on a person’s Ask.fm wall. The platform has been linked with a lot of suicidal cases, and its owners had considered shutting it down this year (Blake, 2015). However, upon investigation, it was discovered that up to 98 per cent of the messages sent to Smith came from the same IP address as her own computer. (Fagge, 2013) Julia Buencamino, the 15-year-old daughter of a known Filipino actor Nonie Buencamino, committed suicide earlier this year (2015) for yet unknown reasons. When Buencamino was still alive she used to post sad and dark works of art on her Instagram account. Instagram is a photo-sharing and video-sharing social media site and application. When she died, she left behind a queued note on her Tumblr page a few days after she was found dead. Tumblr is a microblogging social media platform that allows users to schedule their posts. An excerpt from her note said, “i’m [sic] letting my reasons die with me cause im [sic] afraid of being judged for them h aha [sic] how messed up is that”. Despite family and friends saying that Julia showed “no sign she was depressed” (Entertainment Inquirer, 2015), apparently, she was online. Todd, Smith and Buencamino are only some of the victims who gave the researchers an insight to the dangers of social media use. Although social media might not be the sole reason for their depression which eventually led to their suicide, being active in the social media scene, its role on the fate of these three young individuals cannot be dismissed. However, the question remained as to why social media is a happy place for some people, and yet for others it has become such a negative environment which can contribute to an individual’s depression. Depression is defined as a mood disorder which can cause a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. (Mayoclinic, 2015) Although many people consider depression as a weakness, it is actually a serious medical condition requiring long-term treatment. 3

Social media is defined by Kaplan and Haenlein (2010) as "a group of Internetbased applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0, and that allow the creation and exchange of user-generated content." Examples of social media are the sites mentioned above, Youtube, Facebook, Ask.fm, Instagram and Tumblr among others. Factors such as cyberbullying, social comparison and other factors were studied in order to realize social media’s role in depression. "Social Media Depression" is a term used to informally describe the depressive thoughts associated with using social media (HowStuffWorks, 2015). The term had not yet been listed in Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the official reference for psychiatrists. There are still no formal definition and diagnosis of the term Social Media Depression. The researchers studied social media’s contribution to depression focusing on the youth. According to the Republic Act 8044 or the Youth for Nation-Building Act, the official definition of “Filipino Youth” is from the ages 15 to 30. They are also more likely to understand the concept of depression because as mentioned before, suicide is the leading cause of death for young people, and over 90% of these suicides are caused by mental illness most common of which is depression. The youth are also the most likely individuals to use social media as they are more in touch with new technology Thus, to conduct a research on social media’s contribution to depression, the youth were the best respondents and informants to study.

3. Social Media Depression in the Philippine Setting The Philippines was among the top 20 countries with the most internet users as of 2013 according to Internet World Stats, a website which features data on world internet usage. The statistics showed that as of 2013, Philippines is in the 14th place with

over 44.2 million population having internet access out of its total 98.39 million population. From a recent statistics by We Are Social SG, a Public Relations agency from Singapore, social media penetration in the Philippines is up to 32% - 40%. Filipinos spend approximately 6.3 hours in the internet and 4.3 hours in social media. Back in 2014, Time Magazine, proclaimed Makati, Pasig and Cebu as 3 of the top 10 selfie capitals of the world. Makati and Pasig tied on the first spot, and Cebu followed behind at number 8. Time Magazine ranked the places according to the number of pictures taken with the #selfie on Instagram. This goes to show that not only are Filipinos fond of taking pictures, but that they are very active in posting them on their social media sites. Despite the terrible 2.5 mbps average internet speed in the country, one of the bottom three in the world according to WeAreSocial SG, this does not hinder the Filipinos from consuming social media. Upon the researchersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; review of related literature, the published journals and researches related to social media and depression were limited only to studies conducted in countries such as USA, Australia and UK. A study of the Social Media Depression in the Philippine setting was not obtained during the research. This is the research gap that the researchers filled. The researchers aimed to discover social mediaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s role on the depression of the youth, particularly in the bracket age of 15 to 30, in the Philippines. World Health Organization reported in 2012 that the Philippines is one of the top five countries with a rising suicide rate. The steadily increasing popularity of social media throughout the years might have some contribution on this recent suicide statistics in the country.

Statement of the Problem and Objectives

Social media provides a platform that lets people from all over the world connect with each other. By following or adding the people you know in your social media account, you get to stay connected with them beyond distance and time conflicts. However, for some individuals social media can be the root of sad feelings. Long-term overexposure to social media can lead to depression, and eventually suicide as evidenced by the victims mentioned in Chapter I, Section 2. The conflicting positive and negative effects of social media on different individuals present a problem. In light of social media’s role in depression, the researchers answered the research question: Does social media use contribute to the depression of its primary users, the youth who are also the age group most prone to depression? To answer the primary research question, the researchers conducted a research study guided by the general objective: ·

To determine if and how social media is contributing to depression among the

Filipino youth, and to provide a recommendation on how to use social media in a positive way. To dig deeper into the research and discover the different angles on the topic of social media and depression, and to spread information and the solution, the researchers achieved the following specific objectives: 1.

To determine social media consumption patterns of selected Filipino youth.

To find out the informants’ views on social media use as a source of depression.

To identify the factors that make social media depressing to some youth users.

To determine the negative effects of social media on a user’s mentality contributing

to depression. 5.

To spread awareness about Social Media Depression through a video infographic.

C. Significance of the Study The social media is a relatively new product of technology which gained widespread attention in the Philippines starting with Friendster on the year 2002. Many immediately got hooked with the platform as it provides an avenue of entertainment and socialization. Today giant companies like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. are ruling the world of hashtags, likes and follows. Many people expose themselves to different social media sites, but aside from all the good things that this new media can provide, the users might not be aware that social media has its dark side as well. The researchers identified the consequences of social media use to the Filipinos focusing on the youth. With this, the researchers determined whether social media can really contribute to depression. As was mentioned before, WHO reported in 2012 that the Philippines is one of the top 5 countries with the fastest rate of increasing suicidal rate, thus implicating that many Filipinos are becoming depressed since depression is the leading cause of suicide among the youth. The researchers chose to focus on this area because the rise of social media use and the rise of depression significantly went higher together. Thus, the connection between social media and depression was explored. This study will contribute to the scholarly works on the topic of internet use, specifically as it is related to internet dependency and Social Media Depression. The study focused on the Filipino youth, and their social media consumption patterns and perceptions to which the researchers identified whether social media is really causing depression, and learned about the factors that cause it to be depressing. The results of this research aimed to provide a recommendation on how to use social media in order for it to be a positive experience to its users. This research will help the youth and everyone else who are suffering from Social Media Depression as it will provide a clearer perspective on what they are undergoing and a recommendation on 7

what they should do about it. This will help the parents who want to learn more about the different kinds of depression in order to understand and therefore prevent tragedy to befall upon their children. This can be a material for psychologists or mental doctors as reference for their patients who are undergoing depression. The realization of this research will establish a safer social media experience among its users especially to the focus of this study who are the Filipino youth. Although the results can also be applied to all users of social media in any walks of life, the youth as the respondents present certain limitations on the outcome of this research. The research also focused on the Philippine setting which means that it might not be significant to other parts of the world.

D. Scope and Limitations In order to gather clear data on the set objectives, the researchers conducted the study with the following limitations: i.

Respondents have to be users of at least one social media platform.

ii.

Respondents will have to be a Filipino.

iii.

Respondents must be from the age bracket 15 to 30. The respondents were users of one or more social media sites like Twitter,

Pinterest, Snapchat, Facebook, etc. Consumption patterns and perceptions on social media will be studied by the researchers. The respondents have first-hand experience in using a social media in order for them to answer the survey and interview questions. The researchers studied social mediaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s contribution to depression on the Filipino youth only, thus conducting the study only to bona fide Filipinos. Various journals and researches on the topic focusing on other countries have already been published, but a study of social media and depression among the people in the Philiippines is uncommon if not nonexistent. 8

Lastly, the respondents were all youths. The young people are the ones most prone to depression, and they are also the most active social media users which has been mentioned and cited previously. As defined by the Republic Act 8044 or the Youth for Nation-Building Act, the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Filipino Youthâ&#x20AC;? is from the ages 15 to 30. Respondents of this research were at least 15 until 30 years old only.

Chapter II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

This chapter is divided into five parts. The first part deals with studies on social media consumption by the youth. The second part deals with studies on social media as a source of depression. The third part identifies the factors that cause depression. The fourth part determines the negative effects of social media on a user’s mentality that may contribute to depression. The last part is a synthesis of all the mentioned related studies.

A. Social Media Consumption Social media is at its peak especially with the expanding modern technology. Different social media platforms are used by various kinds of people of different races, ages and personalities. These sites are used in different ways, either to communicate with peers, keep tabs on the latest news or share stories with people around the globe. A related study to the first objective is conducted by Bolton, Parasuraman, Hoefnagels, Migchels, Kabadayi, Gruber, Komarova and Solnet (2013) which reviewed the Generation Y’s use of social media and its implications on the individual and the society. According to Prensky (2011, as cited by Bolton et al., 2013), Generation Y are called Digital Natives, rather than Digital Immigrants. They are the first generation to havespent their entire lives in the digital environment; information technology profoundly affects howthey live and work (Bennett et al., 2008; Wesner & Miller, 2008 as cited by Bolton et al, 2013). Generation Y activelycontributes, shares, searches for and consumes content – plus works and plays – on social mediaplatforms.Gen Y’s chief purpose for social media use is communication. Bolton et al considered broad categories of social media usage 10

such as contributing, sharing, consuming or searching for content, participating, and playing. Although social media have existed from the birth of Gen Y in 1981, they were widely adopted after 2003 (Boyd & Ellison, 2008 as cited by Bolton et al, 2013). Social media is being used as an avenue for blogging, social networking, online forums, online businesses and others. This study was relevant for the researchers because it focused on the Generation Y which the youth is a part of. This study provided reasons why the youth uses social media. Even though social media can be risky, its uses are also limitless and people appreciate this so much that is why social media will never cease to exist. However, their research was based in the United States therefore leaving out countries with growing youth populations, with the Philippines being one of them. The youth in the US have different attitudes and characteristics the Filipino youth and this makes a significant difference. A study by Basilisco and Cha (2015) examines the reasons why Filipinos are motivated to use Facebook and how this would impact the social capital and life satisfaction. According to the researchers, the theory of uses and gratification is the reason behind an individual making a media selection and the satisfaction that the individual obtains from their choice. Each country has a different motive of using Facebook that is why it is also important to study the role of social capital which is the networks of relationships among people who living in a particular society. Basilisco and Cha concluded that there is a strong connection between Facebook usage toward social capital and life satisfaction. Filipinos use Facebook mainly to keep in touch with their family, loved ones and friends.

This study relates very well to the research because unlike many studies, this is based in a Philippine setting which helped us understand why Filipinos use social media. Although this study focused on Facebookand not so much on other social media platforms, it is a good start in identifying the impact of social media use to the life satisfaction of Filipinos and if this can lead to depression-related problems.

B. Social Media as Source of Depression Social media sites offer endless possibilities to attract users. It is true that sites like Facebook, Ask.fm, Instagram and many other sites provide recreational needs to individuals. So how can something so fun cause adverse effects to people? Can social media sites really be the source of bad behavior which can lead to depression? Facebook is the most popular social media site and has the widest reach but is Facebook usage depressing? According to Tandoc, Ferucci, Duffy (2015), it is not unless it triggers feelings of envy. This study analyzes Facebook envy as a possible connection between Facebook surveillance use and depression among college students. Being in college is very challenging with having to move to a school or university far from home, adjusting to new surroundings, doing piles of homework. There is also the need to make friends and maintain social life. However, this might not come easy to others who have difficultiesin interacting with people in real life. Because of these factors including the pressure to keep up with what is trending in social media, a few individuals are prone to depression. Individuals between 18 and 24 years old were specifically found likely to suffer from depressive disorder symptoms, according to the Centerfor Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2011 as cited by Tandoc et al. 2015) While Facebook has been shown to elicit happiness (Kim & Lee, 2011 as cited by cited by Tandoc et al, 2015), it is also prone to problematic use, such as when young 12

users post photos of them drinking or in sexually suggestive poses (Karl, Peluchette, &Schlaegel, 2010 as cited by Tandoc et al. 2015). New studies argue whether or not heavy Facebook use can lead to depression (Jelenchick et al., 2013; Moreno et al., 2012; Wright et al., 2012 as cited by Tandoc et al. 2015)”. Tandoc and his colleagues’ aim in their study is to confirm whether heavy Facebook can cause depression or not among college students. They used the framework of social rank theory of depression to further strengthen their study. Social rank theory, as a theory of depression, concerns itself with competition. Humans, just like animals, compete for food, mates and various resources (Gilbert & Allan, 1998; Sloman et al., 2003 as cited by Tando et al 2015). For humans, competition is not so much about domination, but about exerting ‘‘social control over resources in contexts where others are going after the same resources’’ (Sloman et al., 2003, p. 115 as cited by Tandoc et al. 2015). Social competition can refer to competition for power or attractiveness, among other things. Those who do not succeed, or those who perceive they have not succeeded, feel subordinated. ‘‘Those who perceive themselves as subordinates are not necessarily depressed, but are vulnerable to depression”. Social rank theory is particularly appropriate for examining depression among young people who are in a stage when they are acutely attuned to and affected by status. They place greater importance on popularity than on other social factors (Lansu&Cillessen, 2012 as cited by Tandoc et al. 2015) and the changes that come with the transition to young adulthood ‘‘enhance interpersonal vulnerability’’ (Abela&Hankin, 2008, p. 81 as cited by Tandoc et al. 2015). Several scholars have been studying the connection of Facebook usage and depression; however, there is no consistent result. Also, individuals have different levels of depression which makes this kind of study difficult to have a final outcome. It is clear 13

though that envy is a major factor on why Facebook can cause depressive symptoms. When an individual envy another, he or she is likely to act in a malevolent manner (Berke, 1988; Parks, Rumble, & Posey, 2002 as cited by Tandoc et al. 2015). Envy can lead to numerous personal vices as well as volatile and hostile actions toward the target of envy (Schoeck et al., 1969 as cited by Tandoc et al. 2015). This study was very relevant for the researchers because it explored envy as the reason for media depression. This added another angle as to why social media can have negative effect on the users. On the other hand, it also confirmed that social media has good uses.This study usesdsocial rank theory which is very useful to this study because it helps define why people feel inferior to others when they are exposed to social media. The difference is it focuses on heavy usage of Facebook. The researchers considered the respondents’ social media consumption regardless of how heavy or light it is and whether there is a difference in behavior. Another study which explored whether social media can be a source of depression is by Krasnova, Wenninger, Widjaja and Buxmann (2013). They studied if Facebook, although it does offer positive effects to its users, still provides a hidden threat to the users’ life satisfaction. Their method in identifying the change of behavior is through conducting two experiments. The first study was to explore the scale, scope and nature of envy-inducing incidents by Facebook through an explorative manner. Through a survey, Krasnova et al asked a combination of open- and close-ended questions. A general open-ended question was asked first: “Please think about the last time you used Facebook. What did you feel afterwards? Which emotions have you experienced?” The positive results including “joy and fun" feelings were the most prevalent with 28.8% of respondents reporting these experiences. On the other hand, 13.8% of

respondents reported feeling “bored”, 9.2% admitted “anger” and 8.9% reported “frustration". Envy was only mentioned by 4 respondents. The seeming unimportance of envy revealed in this analysis may be rooted in respondents’ reluctance to directly admit to experiencing envy, rather reporting such general outcomes as feelings of anger, exhaustion, frustration, and irritation. Admitting to these feelings is more socially acceptable, since they can be equally caused by information overload or social conflict, which carry less social stigma. The second question was: “Many users report feeling frustrated and exhausted after using Facebook. What do you think causes these feelings?” They found that envy emerges as the category of the highest importance with 29.6% of respondents mentioning it as a major reason behind frustration and exhaustion. This result suggests that even though respondents did not admit feeling envy asked directly during the first question, they immediately related envy to frustration resulting from Facebook use. To further study the first experiment, users’ perception in using social media was explored further by asking them about their most recent envy experience. The questions asked were: “Please think about the last time you envied someone. Where did you experience this feeling?” As a result, 71.5% (238) of recent envy-inducing incidents are still experienced offline. Nonetheless, Facebook is responsible for causing 21.3%. In their second study, the role of envy feelings is examined as a mediator between FB passive use and users’ life satisfaction. In line with Krasnova et al’s study, the researchers found that feelings of envy are often triggered by following information of others on FB. Experienced over a long time period, these invidious emotions can lead to frustration and exhaustion, damaging individual life satisfaction – a critical indicator of users’ well-being. As a concluding thought, Krasnova et al believes that “passive following triggers invidious emotions, with users mainly envying happiness of others, the way others spend 15

their vacations; and socialize. The spread and ubiquitous presence of envy on SNSs is shown to undermine users’ life satisfaction” (p. 13) Triggered by over-exposure to social information on a Social Networking Site or SNS, envy feelings can cause significant damage to users’ well-being and impact their life satisfaction. Overall, it appears that envy can indeed be the missing link explaining the negative effect of social information consumption on users’ emotional states and loyalty behavior. Indeed, outcomes of SNS use are tightly coupled with passive following of information others share on the platform – a behavior also synonymously referred to as “content consumption”, “social searching” and “social browsing”. Passive following takes place when users browse their News Feed, click on ‘stories’, follow communication of their friends, or proactively examine profiles of others. Social comparison and envy can be rampant in a peer-dominated SNS environment, which can provide explanation to negative outcomes passive following was shown to produce. SNS environment is particularly likely to aggravate envy feelings, since it promotes narcissistic behavior, with most users sharing only positive things about themselves (Jordan, 2011 as cited by Krasnova et al, 2013). For example, respondents actively using FB were more likely to agree that “others had better lives than themselves” (Chou and Edge, 2012 as cited by Krasnova et al, 2013). There are people who spend so much time on social media. From afar, there are no noticeable signs of depression but this doesn’t mean that all people are entirely happy with what they see on their feeds and profiles. Even though social media has its supply of benefits, there are underlying drawbacks that may affect the life satisfaction of the users and can also provide adverse effects such as depression. This study was useful to for the researchers because it explored a lot of reasons why people feel negative emotions when they use Facebook and not just pure envy and 16

social comparison. This study is different because the researchers explored more possible reasons other than envy that occurs in other sites especially video and imagebased onesbecause seeing others take pictures of their happy lives can invoke feelings of jealousy which can lead to depression for the ones who watches such pictures and videos.

C. Factors that Make Social Media Depressing Facebook and other social media sites cause a mixture of either negative or positive emotions to its users. The following studies explored the factors that social media has which makes a user depressed and if social media has a significant link to depression. In a study by Appel, Crusius and Gerlach (2015), low self-esteem in depressed individuals can cause high social comparison, making envy more likely. Although this can be very common in the offline world, it also occurs in Facebook and other platforms of social media where people are given more freedom to do whatever they want. It is also in Facebook where individuals develop narcissistic tendencies such as bragging about leisure and travel which may cause other users jealousy and envy and then this can lead to depression. Since its explosion, social media has branded itself to the lives of many. The social media popularity brought with it the term â&#x20AC;&#x153;Facebook envyâ&#x20AC;? (Krasnova, Wenninger, Widjaja and Buxmann, 2013), which means the frustration of logging into social media sites and being flooded by the perfect and flawless lives of peers and other people. This phenomenon is one of the factors which can make an individual depressed and can affect depressed individuals even more. Appel et al (2015) conducted an experimental online study which had participants who were depressed and not depressed. They were asked to indicate their self-esteem 17

and with stimulus profiles with their HTML manipulated to look like a realistic Facebook. Both attractive and unattractive profiles were presented to the participants. The profiles were made to look more or less attractive by manipulating crucial profile content, such as job and education, friends, likes, and comments. In all photos, the attractive profile ownerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s appearance was more appealing. The participants were then asked to indicate how attractive they thought the profiles were, how happy they thought the profile owners were, how happy the owners were compared to themselves and how much they want to exchange their lives with theirs, and lastly, their self-esteem. As results, attractive owners were rated as attractive although this did not have any effects on depression. Depressed participants rated any profile owner happier compared to themselves indicating higher perceived inferiority. Envy was higher when the participants were presented with the attractive profiles. Depressed participants were more envious. As predicted, envy was substantially correlated with depression. The findings demonstrate that depression is associated with higher levels of envy, especially when comparison standards are high. Moreover, social comparison seems to play a crucial role in this phenomenon. As predicted, not only did the depressed group report more feelings of inferiority in the social comparison, but inferiority also predicted envy substantially. Furthermore, envy was correlated with depressive symptoms and, negatively, with self-esteem. This was relevant for the researchers because the researchers also looked into the angle of envy as the source of Social Media Depression. It is true that people like to compare themselves to develop their own self-image but others cannot handle the comparison so they to feel sad. With the use of social media, it is easy for someone to document their life and upload it online. Unfortunately, it is just as easy for some people to see good images and the better lives of others. The researchers also planned to do 18

the same social experiment where social media situations will be shown to participants and have them assume as the account owners. This will include a screencapture of a few or no likes and comments situation in a social media platform. They will thebe asked on how they feel about this certain media situation. While this study focused on envy and social comparison as sources of depression, the researchers explored more reasons on why people feel upset when they get online. Such reasons included cyber bullying, being left out by others and feelings of isolation. Another related study is by Steers, Wickham and Acitelli (2014) where which looked into how Facebook usage can affect an individual’s disposition and if it has a direct link to depression. Steers et al., follows Marshall McLuhan’s (1964 as cited by Steers et al, 2014) theory that the “medium is the message”. Individuals should also be mindful of the subtle messages presented to them through a certain medium and not give attention to direct messages. This study also involves the theory of social comparison. Leon Festinger (1954 as cited by Steers et al.) “first theorized that individuals have an innate desire to socially compare themselves to others as a way to evaluate their own opinions and abilities and that people usually selectively choose whom to compare themselves to on the basis of perceived similarity. That is, people tend to compare themselves to peers or friends on self-relevant issues or concepts.” (p. 703) Steers et al. (2014) decided to conduct two studies to determine how social comparison to peers through computer-mediated interactions on Facebook might impact users’ psychological health. Both studies provide evidence that people feel depressed after spending a great deal of time on Facebook because they feel bad when comparing themselves to others.

Once again, this study explored social comparison as the reason behind Social Media Depression. This time, it included subtle messages that the users may not perceive at one glance but have adverse effects on them when they are exploring the web. Another related study is by Han, Liv, Ghasemianlangroodi and Mishra (2014), Ask.fm has been causing incidents of cyberbullying which has led to suicidal tendencies among its users. They examine the negative comments and profile likes of the questions and answers by some of its users. Some of the key findings of the work are that (1) when people have highly negative profiles without any positive support, they become less sociable. (2) users with negative profiles that also receive positive support are more sociable. (3) when people have highly positive profiles, then they also have positive support shows that they socialize the most on this social network. Most of the related studies have focused on Facebook as the social media platform which may or may not have connections to depression. On the other hand, this study focused on Ask.fm where users can post questions and comments to a profile while being not fully giving out their true identity which poses a threat to others because being anonymous give someone the power to do anything and this includes imposing negative behaviors on other users. This is one of the ways that cyberbullying is easily done.

D. Negative Effects of Social Media on a Userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Mentality In using social media, a user is exposed to threats and risks that can affect health, security and privacy. It is important to know these risks to prevent further negative behavior in the future. This section explores the negative effects of social media and its implications to the userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mentality and attitude. 20

According to O’Keeffe, Clarke-Pearson and Council on Communications and Media (2011), social media allows teens to accomplish offline activities online such as staying connected with family and friends, sharing pictures and exchanging ideas. It can also encourage the youth to do things that extend to the community and the world. Social media can also help an individual express oneself and develop unique social skills. On the other hand, inappropriate behavior such as harassing other users, sexting and violation of privacy are just a few of the risks in social media and can impact the lives of the users. Facebook depression is one example of how social media can affect a user’s mentality. Facebook depression is defined as defined as “depression that develops when preteens and teens spend a great deal of time on social media sites, such as Facebook, and then begin to exhibit classic symptoms of depression”. The power of the online world which includes social media is considered to be a factor that might cause depression. As for those who are already depressed without the influence of the web, they may turn to blogs which claims to help the victim but encourages damaging solutions such as substance abuse, unsafe sexual practices or self-destructive behaviors. To avoid negative behaviors, it is important that the parents should guide their children. They should assess the websites their children would like to participate in especially the ones without age restrictions to ensure their safety whenever they are online. This study was relevant for the researchers because it also explained what Facebook depression is and how it can damage a user’s way of thinking. It presented both benefits and threats it poses to its adolescent users. It also agreed that being on Facebook triggers the feelings of depression. Not only did this study call the attention of 21

the adolescent users but also their parents to provide them guidance in choosing which websites to visit and which ones to avoid. According to Robinson, Rodrigues, Fisher and Herrman (2014) social media can be used by the youth to express suicidal feelings and communication of suicide-related behavior. While media plays an important role in the prevention of suicides, social media is another dimension where the interaction between individuals, including expression of suicidal thoughts allows more freedom with no filter and guidance at all, making suicide prevention more challenging than ever. It becomes more difficult now that some websites support suicide with some of them encouraging the users to do the act. Even though social media helps in reducing the damage by providing information about sources of help, online counseling and real-time intervention, there are still reasons why some users cannot avoid thoughts of suicide. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Studies reported that people use these sites for a number of reasons, including to meet others with similar problems and to share their experiences in an anonymous and non-judgmental environment. For the most part people did not use social media to seek professional help or find a suicide partner. Overall, open discussion forums or blogs were reported to be the most useful sites, whilst commercial or professionally run prevention sites were perceived as least useful. There are instances when individuals had used the social media to communicate about their suicidal intentions, sought information about suicide methods, or actually engaged in a suicidal act online.â&#x20AC;? (p. 6) This study demonstrated another use of social media: encouraging suicide. Being suicidal is one of the negative effects to a userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mentality caused by social media. This study was significant for the researchers because it looked into another

angle on how social media can cause depression and in this case, it is to interact with people who are also depressed to the verge of becoming suicidal. Another study related to this objective by Abdulahi, Samadi and Gharleghi (2014) explores the effects of Facebook usage to academic performance by measuring the frequency of use, participation in activities and time spent preparing for class. This study also identifies the health and security risks present when using Facebook. A health issue could not only come from the surroundings of a person, but also within the web environment. In this study, the authors use the term “problematic internet use” or PIU, which is a new and growing health concern for adolescents and young adults. It has also been referred to as internet addiction (Christakis & Moreno, 2009; Dell’Osso, Altamura, Allen, Marazziti, & Hollander, 2006 cited by Abdulahi, et al 2014). Young adults also may be the population most at risk for the development of PIU because they have the highest rates of internet use and frequency (Lenhart et al., 2005; Shiffman, 2009; Tokunaga, 2010 as cited by Abdulahi et al, 2014). The result of their study concluded that “when the usage of Facebook increase, the amount of exposure to privacy and security issues increases as well. When a social networking site is used frequently, the academic performance of students decreases. Furthermore, the health threat result shows that there is a small relationship with social network site.” (Abdulahi et al, 2014 page 142) This study was useful to the research because it also explored the negative effects of using Facebook to college users. It also introduced the term “problematic Internet use” (PIU) which helped us understand further why the respondents are greatly attracted to the Web. However, its setting is in Malaysia and the characteristics and

disposition of Malaysian users might differ from those of Filipinosâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. It also only focused on just Facebook which is only one of the many social media sites that are available. E. Synthesis The previous related studies have already found out that individuals use social media because of the gratification they get from it. Social media satisfies the needs for communication which is the main reason why individuals log in to their respective profiles online. The theory of Uses and Gratifications was used by one of the studies to explain this behavior. On the other hand, based on the studies that were gathered, it is determined that spending some time on social media sites can cause some individuals to feel negative emotions such as sadness, anger and envy. Almost all of the related studies blame envy to be the main reason why bad emotions surface. It is found out that an individual tends to compare oneself to another and ends up feeling depressed if others are doing better. Another finding from the past studies is cyberbullying. Online, there is freedom to withhold an individualâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s real identity and take on anonymous profiles or aliases. This gives the individual the power to do anything and this could include harming someone through posting hurtful comments without feeling responsible. Cyberbullying is also one of the causes why social media is depressing to some of the users. All related studies contribute to the deeper understanding of the phenomenon called Social Media Depression. This study also focused on Social Media Depression which is under the bigger phenomenon of Internet depression. Social Media Depression is yet to be fully understood and be given a clear definition especially in the Philippines. This study focused on the youth in the Philippines because the topic of Social Media Depression is still vague in the country. Also, the youth is known to be the major 24

users of social media and is the most vulnerable to its effects. This aims to contribute to the knowledge of this alarming phenomenon because this can help in the prevention of depression and will encourage the users to use social media to the fullest in the most productive, safest and happiest way possible.

CHAPTER III FRAMEWORK OF THE STUDY

To support this research on social mediaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s contribution to depression among selected Filipino youth, related theories were integrated. Uses and Gratifications Theory, Dependency Theory, and Social Information Processing Theory were the three theories that the researchers found most relevant to the study. Uses and Gratifications Theory was the main theory to inform this research. The three theories were tied to the four objectives of this study. In order to conduct the most effective research on the topic, the researchers looked at previous concepts and arguments presented in the aforementioned theories. The theoretical foundation of this study anchored on the Sociopsychological and Cybernetic traditions of communication. Uses and Gratifications Theory is classified under the Sociopsychological Tradition. This tradition examines cause-and-effect relationships which this study integrated to explore the cause-and-effect relation of Social Media Depression to its users. The Cybernetic Tradition focuses on a system that takes in information (input) from the outside environment, processes them, and creates output (Patrick, 2013). This research focused on the social media as a system, how the inputs from the users are being processed in the platform, and how the output affected the audience in terms of depression.

Theoretical Framework

1. Uses and Gratifications Theory The Uses and Gratifications Theory can be traced back since the 1940s (Zeepedia, n.d.). Various researchers became interested in why people engage themselves in different media consumption patterns. This theory seeks to discover the reasons behind how people choose to consume messages in a particular media, and takes into consideration that different individuals have varying reactions on the same media message. To understand the media consumption pattern, the theory seeks to identify the need that is being fulfilled by an individual who consumes the message. Elihu Katz is the most often associated theorist of Uses and Gratifications. Katz, Blumler and Gurevitch published their research in 1973. Other theorists include, Lazarsfeld-Stanton (1942, 1944, 1949); Herzog (1942); Suchman (1942); Wolfe and Fiske (1949); Berelson (1949); Schramm (1954); Maslow (1970); and Rubin (1985).

a. Social media consumption patterns among selected Filipino youth One of the five main components of Uses and Gratifications Theory is that the audience is conceived as active. Individuals are responsible for their choice of a particular media to achieve gratification. Media compete for attention and time, yet people prefer to consume a particular media and disregard the others. This is because people use media for their own particular purposes which will be explained further in the next concept. A 2015 research by South Korean university students, Richard Basilisco and Cha, Kyung Jin integrated Uses and Gratification Theory in their research on the motivation and impact of Facebook usage among Filipino users. Basilisco and Cha were 27

able to gather 243 respondents of varying sex, civil status, age and some living abroad, for their research. The results of the research showed that: Hours spent in Facebook shows only 23 (9.5%) who spend less than 1 hour in Facebook, while there are 75(30.9%) who spend 1-2 hours, the same also goes to 3-4 hours 75(30.9%) spent in Facebook and about 70 (28.8%) spend more than 5 hours in Facebook. (p. 183) The audience is not passive to the different medias in that they do not just accept what comes to them, but consciously makes decision on which media and how much time and attention to allot. To understand why a particular media consumption trend is predominant among individuals it is important to understand the different motivations of social media users. By identifying the trends of social media consumption among the Filipino youth, the researchers were able to identify the factors behind social media as a cause of depression.

b. Motivations on use of social media Elihu Katz asked the question “What do people do with media?” instead of the more common “What do media do to people?” According to Uses and Gratifications Theory, we won’t understand the media choices we make unless we first recognize the underlying needs that motivate our behavior (Griffin, 2012). In the same research mentioned above by Basilisco and Cha (2015), they were able to identify five motivations of Facebook use among their Filipino respondents. The five motivations according to order of significance (strong-weak) were seeking convenience, seeking information, seeking friends, seeking entertainment then seeking support. Through the Uses and Gratifications Theory, they were able to gather the different consumption trends and motivations of Filipino Facebook users. 28

By understanding the needs of social media consumers, this made clear the motivations behind the social media consumption patterns of the target Filipino youth students of this research. It is not enough to identify only the social media being used, the amount of time being spent on the social media, etc. It is also a priority to identify the motivations behind a particular social media consumption pattern. The eight typologies of media uses and gratifications that were identified by Alan Rubin, communication scholar, are (1) passing time, (2) companionship, (3) escape, (4) enjoyment, (5) social interaction, (6) relaxation, (7) information, and (8) excitement. By identifying which of the typologies not limited from those mentioned by Rubin motivates social media use among selected Filipino youth, the effects of the social media site to a particular respondent was better understood. As mentioned by theorists Mark Levy and Sven Windahl: As commonly understood by gratifications researchers, the term "audience activity" postulates a voluntaristic and selective orientation by audiences toward the communication process. In brief, it suggests that media use is motivated by needs and goals that are defined by audience members themselves, and that active participation in the communication process may facilitate, limit, or otherwise influence the gratifications and effects associated with exposure. Current thinking also suggests that audience activity is best conceptualized as a variable construct, with audiences exhibiting varying kinds and degrees of activity. (Levy and Windahl, 1985, p. 2018) Through discovering the motivations behind social media use among Filipino youth, the researchers understood better what individuals who suffer from Social Media Depression do with social media, thus discovering the trend. 29

c. Different effects on different individuals Another driving mechanism behind the Uses and Gratification Theory, and one that is crucial to this study is the concept that media has different effects on different individuals. Glen Sparks from Purdue University explained this concept through his research on fear. While some truly enjoy being exposed to scary movies, others suffer and become emotionally upset from it. In the same sense, social media can have varying effects on different Filipino youth who are users. For some it is a great place that provides happiness and relaxation, yet for others it is a dark place that causes sadness and depression. This is the irony of social media that the researchers sought to discover with the use of the Uses and Gratifications Theory. Not everything can be explained by the motivations and the consumption patterns. Despite having the same consumption patterns and motivations of social media use, being different individuals means having different reactions to a particular social media situation. Demographics such as gender, age, etc. also affected the results. The researchers sought to clear this out by conducting Focus Group Discussions and Focus Interviews, and grouping individuals according to their attitudes or behaviors, and their reactions toward social media.

2. Dependency Theory Dependency Theory was originally proposed by Sandra Ball-Rokeach and Melvin De Fleur in 1976 (Rossi, 2002). This theory is complementary to the Uses and GratificationsTheory.Dependency Theory believes that the audience is active in the media they choose to consume, and the consequences of their involvement. There are two factors that will determine how dependent you will become on a particular media. In Stephen Littlejohnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s book Theories of Human Communication 30

(2002), he explained, “First you will become more dependent on media that meet a number of your needs than on media that provide just a few.” Different people have different needs. Therefore, if a person finds a particular medium that satisfies their central desires they are most likely to continue the use of that media in the future (Rossi, 2002). Littlejohn then proceeds to explain, “The second source of dependency is social stability.” When the society is in conflict, people turn to media to revive the sense of stability. For example, presidential election is coming in the Philippines, and there is an observable increase in social media use as evidenced by the rise of the number of posts being made. The audience become more dependent on the media to find out what is happening in the society (Rossi, 2002). Ball-Rokeach and DeFleur also proposed in their book Communication Research 3 (1976) that, “The basic propositions of The Dependency Theory can be brought together and summarized as follows: The potential for mass media messages to achieve a broad range of cognitive, affective, and behavioral effects will be increased when media systems serve many unique, and central information functions.” This again examines how the more the medium has to offer, the more useful it will become (Rossi, 2002). Dependency Theory reiterates that the media has the ability to influence three different areas of an individual’s character, the cognitive, behavioural and affective. The cognitive effects of the media can change or form the attitude of an individual which can lead to agenda setting. Since the theory believes that people rely on the media for information, this means that the media will certainly have an influence over a person’s attitude. The second effect is on the behavioral aspect. As a result, the audience will tend to do things they don’t normally do because of what was being shown on the media. An 31

example is an advertisement of a restaurant featuring a famous celebrity. Because the fans of the celebrity want to follow him/her, they will go over to the restaurant even if the food is not of their preference. Lastly, the media also has an effect on the affective area. This means that the media can invoke many different emotions such as fear, joy, and sadness. As what this study proposes, social media can have a depressing effect to some of its users which might be related to an individualâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s dependency of this particular media. New media has changed the landscape of how people communicate. The internet age has a lot of consequences that various researchers have been theorizing about. This includes a research on hypertext, information highway, online dating, internet addiction, and internet dependency among others. The concept of internet dependency was very relevant to the study as it helped the researchers in discovering what motivates the youth who are social media users in consuming messages from social media sites despite negative effects on them specifically depression. The researchers also took into consideration the proposal from Dependency Theory that external factors such as availability of the medium or peer pressure can also influence an individualâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s social media use. Furthermore, the concept of internet dependency was tied up to the concept of Social Media Depression. Although this medical condition is not officially listed as a legitimate mental disorder, many researches on the topic had been conducted and had proven that the phenomenon really does exist among individuals. Digital communication has plenty of benefits as it makes communication more convenient and faster, but various researches have linked depression as one of its negative consequences particularly in social media. There is limited study on the topic in the Philippine setting, thus the researchers filled in this research gap.

Social Information Processing Theory

Social Information Processing Theory (SIP) is a communication theory developed by Joseph Walther in 1992. SIP seeks to explain interpersonal communication that happens through computer-mediated communication (CMC). Some examples would be email, instant messaging and the interaction that happens in social media platforms. SIP Theoryexplains how people get to know one another online, without nonverbal cues, and how they develop and manage relationships in the computermediated environment (Walther, 1992). The general consensus before SIP was that CMC was not a conducive medium to form relationships. The three pre-existing theories that countered SIP are: 1. Social Presence Theory which explains that CMC deprives users of the feeling that another real person is involved in the interaction. 2. Media Richness Theory suggests that CMC bandwidth for information is too narrow to be able to convey rich relational messages. 3. The lack of nonverbal cues is another flaw pointed out that is necessary to develop relationships. Walther argued by explaining CMC as “a SIP instead of a gulp”. As explained by Griffin (2012): The SIP acronym suggests a liquid analogy that can help us understand Walther’s thinking. Suppose someone hands you a 12-ounce glass of water, cola, or beer—whatever drink you find refreshing. You could hoist the glass and chug the contents in a matter of seconds. That big gulp is similar to being face-to-face with someone you’ve just met and want to know better. The flood of verbal and nonverbal information makes it possible to form a vivid interpersonal impression that will affect your future 33

interaction. But what if you had to drink your beverage through a straw—one sip at a time? You’d still be able to drain the entire 12 ounces, but it would take much longer. That’s the situation for CMC users who are thirsty for social information. They end up with the same quantity and quality of interpersonal knowledge, but it accumulates at a slower rate. (Griffin, 2012, p. 140) As pointed out above, extended time is one point that Walther argued regarding relationships formed in CMC. Another is verbal cues of affinity replace nonverbal cues. This purports that linguistic content in CMC can be solely relied on to replace nonverbal cues that happen in face-to-face interaction. The researchersusedSIP Theory to delve deeper into the interaction that happens online, and discover how CMC through social media caused depression on the Filipino youth. As mentioned in Uses and Gratifications Theory, media have different effects on different people. The results of this study discovered the consequences of social media in relation to depression using the context of Walther’s two points in SIP Theory, extended time and verbal cues of affinity replace nonverbal cue. The arguments presented in the other three theories Social Presence Theory, Media Richness Theory and filtered out cues that countered SIP Theory were also explored.

Integration of the Theories

The three theories that were discussed, Uses and Gratifications Theory, Dependency Theory and Social Information Processing (SIP) Theory were all crucial for this study. The concepts that were presented in each theory were integrated together to form a comprehensive model as the foundation of this study. This integration was used as the blue print for the researchers to set the direction of this thesis.

Uses and Gratifications Theory was used to study the connection of social media consumption patterns of selected Filipino youth. As mentioned before, Uses and Gratifications assumes the audience as active consumers of media. The Filipino youth make conscious decision on which media to choose with all the options competing for their attention and time. The consumption of social media was examined through the motivations that were identified. Dependency Theory was then connected to the consumption patterns and the motivations behind them. The concept of Social Media Depression was explored in relation to the differing perceptions of Filipino youths with varying consumption patterns, motivations and as different individuals. The perceptions then lead to the SIP Theory. Through the SIPTheory, the researchers examined the interactions that happen on the various social media sites or applications, and identified the factors that cause depression to some of its users. The consumption patterns and the motivations in the Uses and Gratifications theory were also directly related to the SIP Theory to help identify the factors causing depression through common trends of use that was observed among those with Social Media Depression. (Please see Figure 1.)

Figure 1.Theoretical Model of the Study

Conceptual Framework

Uses and Gratificationsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; two concepts, consumption patterns and motivations of social media use were used to study the Filipino youthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s preferences of social media among the numerous platforms that are available. Which social media, time spent on each, average time of day, type of use, preferred device and reasons of use were examined on the research. Demographical trends on gender, age, etc. in the use of social media were also observed. The consumption patterns and motivations of social media use were then integrated with the perception on the concept of Social Media Depression from theDependency Theory. The integration of the weak/strong perceptions on Social Media Depression to individualsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; social media consumption trend and main motivations of use lead to the next concept. The next concept is the interaction that happens in CMC which is different from face-to-face as explained by the SIP Theory. Through identifying the perceptions on Social Media Depression, and the consumption patterns and motivations of use, the researchers examined the different factors in CMC that made social media depressing for some consumers. The researchers took into consideration the third concept from the Uses and Gratifications Theory that social media can have different effects on different individuals. Thus, demographical trends were also observed. Differing attitudes was considered by having open-ended questions through FGDs and FIs. To delve deeper into the factors of Social Media Depression with consideration to individuality, a legitimate test material to gauge mental health was part of the survey. (Please see Figure 2.)

Figure 2.Conceptual Model of the Study

Operational Framework

To make the study clearer, the indicators and measures is discussed in the operational model of this research. This will allow the methodology to flow easier while staying pertinent to the involved theories. The Uses and Gratifications Theoryhad the indicators and measures of number of hours, types of social media used, most frequently used social media and manner of using to support the first objective which is to identify the social media consumption patterns of selected students. The Dependency Theory supported the second objective which is

the

perceptions on social media as a source of depression through the indicators and measures of strongly agree, agree, undecided, disagree, strongly disagree. The indicators and measures of CMC interaction factors in Social Media Depression backed by the SIP Theory was dependent variables to the concepts of social media consumption patterns and motivations of use and the perceptions on Social Media Depression. SIP theory supported the objective of identifying the factors that cause depression to some users. CMC interaction relied on the answers of the respondents and informants; thus, the consumption patterns, motivations and perceptions were independent variables, and the factors to be identified will be dependent upon them. Taking into consideration that CMC interaction in social media sites might merely aggravate preexisting depression in an individual, a test material to gauge the mental health of the respondents was included in the survey. The result was then tied up to the other parts relating to social media use and perceptions. Dependency Theory was also used for the fourth objective which is to identify the negative effects of social media on the affective area that can cause depression. Some

of the indicators and measures for this were mental issues, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, etc. Please see Figure 3 for a visual flow of the Operational Model.

Figure 3.Operational Model of the Study

D. Definition of Terms

1. Computermediated

It refers to any communication that is made through the use of two or more electronic devices. This can be communication

Communication that occurs in text messaging, email, chat rooms, forums and social media. The study focused on social media and how the computer-mediated communication that occurs on it can lead to depression or negative emotions. 2. Consumption Pattern

It is a concept from Elihu Katz’s Uses and Gratifications Theory. The concept explains the sum of information or entertainment taken in by an individual or group (Mackay, 2014). In this study the term refers to the respondents’ and informants’ trends in using social media. This includes the social media site they are active on, the amount of time spent on each daily, and their motivations of use.

3. Depression

A mood disorder which causes a persistent feeling of sadness as defined by Mayo Clinic, a nonprofit medical research group. In this study, the researchers will identify who among the respondents are depressed through Beck’s Depression Inventory II.

4. Filipino

A citizen of the Philippines. The respondents must meet the criteria of being a Filipino either by birth or naturalization.

5. Internet Dependency

The term is synonymous with internet addiction. It refers to an individual having compulsive behavior to use the internet, and 41

prioritizing it over any other thing. The research focused on internet dependency in using social media sites. The researchers delved deeper into why social media users continue using the platform despite its perceived negative effects. 6. Media/ Medium

It refers to the means of dessiminating information or entertainment through a large number of audiences. Traditional media includes television, radio, and print. New media refers to computer, internet, and social media which is the focus of this study.

7. Motivation

It is another concept from Uses and Gratifications. The word generally refers to what pushes you to do certain things or to behave in a certain way. In this study, the term denotes the different reasons behind why consumers of social media use the platform. Some motivations include information-gathering, entertainment-seeking and socializing.

8. New Media

The term refers to the modern means of dessiminating information or entertainment. It commonly refers to using digital technologies such as the internet for communication. This includes websites, video games, and social media. This research particularly referred to new media as the internet and social media.

9. Social Media

Websites and applications that enable users to create and share content or to participate in social networking (Oxford 42

Advanced Learner's Dictionary, 2015). The scope of this study included all social media sites and/or platforms that are available. 10. Social Media Depression

It refers to negative feelings harbored through social media use. Many studies have linked social media with depression, although the term is not yet officially listed as a mental disorder. There are many factors in computer-mediated communication that might be the cause of depression, this was what the researchers aim to identify as well as the informants’ and respondents’ familiarity and perception of the phenomenon.

11. Youth

Period between childhood and adult age. The Republic Act 8044 or the Youth for Nation-Building Act defines the “Filipino Youth” as the people from the ages 15 to 30. Respondents of this research were at least 15 until 30 years old only.

CHAPTER IV METHODS AND PROCEDURES

Research Design and Methods

1. Research Design Using social media is gratifying, but it also has its drawbacks one of which might be the depressive feelings that users might develop. The researchers determined if social media is indeed causing depression among its Filipino youth users and what the factors might be. To accomplish this, the researchers integrated the most suitable research design and methods to achieve the general and particular objectives of this study. According to the goal of the study on Social Mediaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s contribution to the depression of the youth in the Philippine setting, the research is basic or pure, exploratory and descriptive. It is basic or pure because social media is a new technology and therefore the phenomenon of Social Media Depression is still a vague issue especially in the country. Also, previous researches done on the topic resulted in inconsistent data. On the levels of investigation, this study is a descriptive research because it explored a recognized phenomenon. Due to its millions of users worldwide, social media is ubiquitous in the society. Depression is also not a new term. The link between these two issues had already been explored although social media disorder had not yet been listed as a legitimate mental disorder. This is also an exploratory research. There are several studies conducted that discusses Social Media Depression but there is still no clear definition given to it. This study explored the phenomenon based on past related researchers to provide new 44

knowledge.

To study Social Media Depression, the researchers also presented the

causes and effects of Social Media Depression. Social media is presented to be the cause, and the negative psychological consequences it has to its users are the effects that were studied in relation to depression.

2. Research Methods The researchers used multi-method approach. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were conducted in order to gather a rich data and reach the objectives of this study. For the quantitative method, the researchers conducted a survey to determine the respondentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; motivations of use, consumption patterns, views and perceptions, and the factors that cause Social Media Depression. The survey was an instrument to answer the studyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first three objectives. First is to determine social media consumption patterns and motivations of use of selected youth in the Philippines. Second, is to find out the informantsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; views on social media use as a source of depression. Third, is to identify the factors in social media sites that make them depressing to some youth users. For the qualitative research, the researchers performed three different methods: Focus Group Discussion, Focus Interviews and Key Informant Interviews. The Focus Group Discussion participants were chosen from the survey respondents who do not feel depressed when using social media. On the other hand, the Focus Interview informants were the survey respondents who feel depressed when using social media. The Key Informant Interviews were for cross-validation purposes and professional advice on depression.

Concepts and Indicators

The researches formed a matrix containing the specific theories, concepts, measures and methods that meet with the set objectives. The first objective is “to determine the social media consumption patterns of the respondents”. The Uses and Gratifications Theory was applied because it explains the active role that the users make in choosing their medium which in this case is all the social media platforms available. This theory also explains that the users choose their medium because of different reasons. This helped in determining the motivations of social media use behind each respondent. For the second and fourth specific objectives which are “to find out the informants’ views on social media use as a source of depression” and “to determine the negative effects of social media on a user’s mentality contributing to depression”, the researchers integrated the Dependency Theory. This theory is related to Uses and Gratifications Theory, and it seeks to explain how the consumption of a particular media can affect the cognitive, behavioral and affective areas of a person. In this study social media’s effect on an individual’s affective area was explored to discover how Social Media Depression develops. The theory used for the third objective which is “to determine the negative effects of social media on a user’s mentality contributing to depression” was Social Information Processing Theory. This theory expounds on computer-mediated-communication which explains how people establish relationships online and how they manage them. Because the system is different in the online world, factors such as anonymity or social presence might affect social media users in a negative way. For the last objective which is to produce a creative output in a form of an informative video, all theories are applied since it relies on the results of the first four objectives that correspond to the different theories. Its purpose is to raise awareness on 46

Social Media Depression and aims to promote safe usage of social media. It will be shared online in different social media platforms, especially in Youtube and Facebook, which are two of the most used social media websites worldwide.

Matrix 1.Concepts, Indicators, Variables and Measures Specific

Theory

Objectives

Concepts/

Indicators/

Variables

Measures

Methods

1. To determine

Uses and

Consumption

Number of hours,

Survey (100

social media

Gratifications

patterns

types of social

respondents)

consumption

Motivations of

media used, most

patterns among

use

frequently used

selected Filipino

social media,

youth.

manner of using, motivations of use

2. To find out

Dependency

Perception/

Strongly Agree,

Survey (100

the informantsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

Theory

Views

Agree, Undecided, respondents)

views on social

Disagree, Strongly

FGD (9

media use as a

Disagree

informants)

source of

Focus

depression.

Interviews (5 informants)

3. To identify

Social

CMC

Envy,

Survey (100

the factors that

Information

interaction

Cyberbullying,

respondents)

make social

Processing

Feeling neglected,

FGD (9

media

(SIP) Theory

Negative News,

informants)

depressing to

Inner psycho-

Focus

some youth

emotional

Interviews (5

users.

conditions

informants) Key Informant Interviews (2 informants)

4. To determine

Dependency

Social Media

Psychological

Key Informant

the negative

Theory

Consumption

effects: mental

Interviews (2

effects of social

issues, anxiety,

informants)

media on a

suicidal thoughts

FGD (9 informants)

userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mentality contributing to depression. 5. To spread

Uses and

Social Media

awareness

Gratifications,

Depression

about Social

Dependency

among Filipino

Media

and SIP

youth

Depression

Theories

Research Results

Infographic video (2 mins)

through a video infographic.

Units of Analysis and Sampling

The youth is one of the major users of social media. Thus, they are the group that is greatly affected by using social media sites such as Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, etc. This study used purposive sampling, a kind of non-probability sampling wherein the respondents were chosen according to certain criteria. The research involved 100 respondents for the survey, 9 informants for the Focus Group Discussion and five informants for the Focus Interview. They were all (a) Filipinos, (b) active social media users and (c) in the age bracket of 15-30 years old. The researchers chose Filipinos as respondents because there areonly limited studies about the phenomenon in the country, the Philippines was chosen to be the setting of the research so as to identify if Social Media Depression is already present in the country or is it still a small issue among Filipinos. Another condition for the respondents to be able to participate in this study is they should be aged from 15-30 years old because they are in the age bracket that is the most active in social media and therefore, they are most likely to be exposed to the threats of Social Media Depression. Another consideration is that the respondents must be active consumers of social media. From those who answered from the survey, the researchers chose the respondents, who seem to have no Social Media Depression and the informants who claimed that they seem to have Social Media Depression. For gathering answers from the respondents, a Focus Group Discussion (FGD) was conducted with nine (9) of them present. These nine respondents were all youth from Cebu since it would not be convenient if respondents from other region would be the ones invited. These respondents feel that they do not have Social Media Depression as they answered

‘neutral’, ‘disagree’ or ‘strongly disagree’ to the statement “You feel depressed when you use your social media account/s” which can be found in the survey. The informants for the Focus Interview were chosen in the same manner. They claimed to feel depressed when they use social media. To determine this, these individuals answered strongly agree or agree to the strongest statement that indicated Social Media Depression which was “You feel depressed when you use your social media account/s” included in the survey. Moreover, the researchers interviewed two key informant psychologists who provided deeper understanding on the concept of depression, its possible connection to social media and the behavior of the youth on why they use social media very often. After the three research methods were conducted, we reviewed the answers. The results were incorporated in the video as its main content. Any valuable information including statistics, relevant quotes from the informants and their different perspectives about social media were placed in the video as well. It will be uploaded in Youtube and will be shared in various social media sites.

Data Gathering Procedure

To ensure a well-organized data gathering, the researchers followed guidelines in interviewing the respondents. A calendar was also set for the dates of the interviews and surveys for this study. In interviewing the 100 respondents, each of them was asked if they fit the criteria. Those who fit then proceeded to the next step which was the answering of the survey questionnaires. The demographic questions included gender, age, etc. as observed trends on each might indicate realizations on the research. They then proceeded to answer the five-part survey. After answering, the researchers collated the data and tabulated the results. 50

For the qualitative research, the researchers used three different methods: Focus Group Discussion, Focus Interview and Key Informant Interview. The Focus Group Discussion was composed of 9 respondents. These were the respondent who answered the survey and feel that they do not have Social Media Depression. Beforehand, the researchers asked the FGD informants to sign a consent form to disclose their names in this research. (Please see Appendix E). Most researches do not publish the real names of the respondents. The significance on why the researchers placed the FGD informants’ real names in this thesis is to emphasize the aspect that social media users who don’t feel any negative feelings when using the platform are not afraid to reveal their identity; whereas, those who claimed to have Social Media Depression were adamant to remain anonymous. This said a lot on why the phenomenon of Social Media Depression is not as tackled as it should be. After the introductions, the FGD started. They were asked one by one about the questions prepared. They were then encouraged to exchange ideas and comment on the answers of the other respondents. One of the researchers acted as the facilitator who asked the FGD questions and one was the observer who took notes of the whole discussion. The respondents’ answers were then recorded. Some of their answers were used for the results and discussions. For the Focus Interview, the researchers selected people who answered the survey and claimed to feel depressed when using social media. The researchers chose to keep their anonymity so that they can answer with no reservations because feeling depressed while using social media is a sensitive subject. To determine that they seem to feel depressed when using social media, these individuals answered strongly agree or agree to the strongest statement that indicated Social Media Depression which was “You feel depressed when you use your social media account/s.” Only one respondent 51

answered strongly agree, and seven answered agree. Of these eight individuals, two of them did not leave names nor contact details. The researchers invited the remaining six. One did not reply, so there were only five informants left. The three were interviewed in person and the two of them through text just to maintain their anonymity at their request. The researchers sought to examine not just the social media system, but also the psychology of its users. To gather a more comprehensive data regarding the behavior and thinking of the respondents and participants, the researchers interviewed two registered psychologists to further explain the concept of depression and to determine if Social Media Depression is really an existing phenomenon in the country. This further built the foundation of the study and strengthened the results. Some of their answers can be found in Chapter V, Results and Discussions of this study. After collecting and analyzing the data from the research methods, the researchers organized the results and answers of the informants to be added to the creative output which is a video about the contribution of social media to depression among the Filipino youth. The video is two minutes long and presented in an informative but refreshing manner, something that the youth will be able to appreciate. To come up with the video, the researchers made a script (please see Appendix F) first to be guided in the creation process. After this, the conceptualization and the video animation using Adobe Software began. It will be uploaded in Youtube and shared on different social media sites. The pre-test was done last October. The researchers started contacting possible respondents on the third week of December up to January and once they were reached proceeded with the surveys, interviews and FGDs until the last week of March and first week of April. The remaining days were allotted for the making and editing of the video. The final thesis defense was held in May.

Table 1.Thesis Timetable Schedule

Planned Activities

December â&#x20AC;&#x201C; January

Contact possible survey respondents

February

Conduct survey

March â&#x20AC;&#x201C; first week of

Conduct FGDs

April

Conduct Key Informant Interviews

Remaining days of April

Collate and finalize data gathered from surveys, FGDs and interviews Make the creative output Edit and polish video to be uploaded on Youtube

May

Final thesis defense To avoid financial conflicts, the approximate budget needed for this thesis was

plotted. This budget was spent on the tokens for the FGD participants and for the key informants. For the survey questionnaires, online copies to respondents were sent out via Google Docs, but to ensure the goal of 100 respondents the researchers also gave out physical copies to those who were readily available. The printing and bookbinding will also be covered. The estimated budget will be Php 5, 000.

Table 2.Line Item Budget Items to be spent on

Budget allotted for said item

Tokens for FGD participants

1,500

Token for key informants

800

Printing of survey questionnaires 200 Printing and bookbinding (from oral defense to final copy)

2,500

Total

5,000

Research Instruments

The questions for the survey were about the respondentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; social media consumption patterns motivations, perceptions on Social Media Depression, mental health and perceived negative effects of social media. The second part is in relation to the first objective, Social Media Consumption. This part asked what social media sites the respondents have been using, why they use social media, how they access it (either through laptop, smartphone, tablet, etc.), and the time of day access their accounts and the duration of the use of their social media accounts. The third part is related to the second objective, Views and Perception on Social Media. In this part, the respondents were asked for their agreeableness on each of the questions. They checked if they strongly agreed, agreed, are neutral, disagreed or strongly disagreed on the questions that were presented. The questions pertained to Social Media Depression. This part presented scenarios where users can be led to 54

depression by different factors such as getting no likes or comments on Facebook, isolation from peers, direct negative comments and presence of depressing posts. The fourth part corresponded to Negative Feelings Associated with Social Media Use. In this part, the respondents were presented with pictures of social media scenarios have them assume to be the owners of the accounts. The first picture was a private message on Facebook but it gained no replies. The second picture was a post with no comments. The third picture showed negative comments on Ask.fm. The fourth part was a picture of an Instagram account, assumed as owned by the respondent, with only a few likes and followers as compared side-by-side to another with many likes and followers. They were then asked if the following pictures made them feel sad, insecure or depressed. (The survey questionnaire can be found in Appendix A.) For the fifth and last part of our survey, the respondents answered the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) which is â&#x20AC;&#x153;a series of questions developed to measure the intensity, severity, and depth of depression in patients with psychiatric diagnoses. It is composed of 21 questions, each designed to assess a specific symptom common among people with depression. It had four possible responses. Items 1 to 13 assess symptoms that are psychological in nature, while items 14 to 21 assess more physical symptoms. Each response is assigned a score ranging from zero to three, indicating the severity of the symptom.â&#x20AC;?(Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders, accessed on 2016). The BDI was first designed by American psychiatrist and professor emeritus in the department of psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania, Aaron T. Beck. For this study, the researchers will be using the second version of BDI (BDI-II) since the questions are appropriate for ages 13-80 years old. (Interpreting instructions on the Beck Depression Inventory Sheet can be found in Appendix D.) The purpose of this questionnaire was to determine the correlation of the userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mental health to his/her social media usage and feelings associated with it. If the user is 55

not depressed in real life but is depressed on social media would mean that being online does have a negative effect. On the other hand, if the user is depressed in real life but not so much on social media, it means that these sites have less or no effect to them at all. For the FGD/FI questions, they were asked if they were aware of Social Media Depression, if they experienced Social Media Depression, did they think that social media causes depression among selected Filipino youth and if they thought that that the rise in the statistics of depressed youth was caused by the increased popularity of social media use. They were also asked about their thoughts on why social media sites might cause depression among its users and in what ways can this be prevented. (The FGD/FI guide questions can be seen in Appendix B.) For the Key Informant Interviews, a research questionnaire was used to ask open-ended questions. Opinions about the participantsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; reactions in the video will be gathered. The researchers asked about what depression really is and if Social Media Depression is a real medical condition. Questions about why the Filipino youth are fond of using social media and its psychological effects that might lead to Social Media Depression were also asked. Moreover, the researchers asked if Social Media Depression can be the main cause of real-life depression or does it only aggravate the present condition of depression if a person has it already. Lastly, asked for recommendations on how the users can avoid feeling depressed when they are exposed to social media. (The guide questions for the Key Informant Interviews can be seen on the Appendix C.) For the creative output, a video containing the important aspects of this research will be uploaded in Youtube and shared online. A copy of the script can be found in Appendix F and a disk containing a soft copy of the final video output and of this thesis will be attached on the last part of the hardbound final thesis. 56

Data Analysis Methods

After the surveys and FGDs, the data gathered were analyzed through descriptive statistics specifically the frequencies and percentages to identify if there were patterns in the answers of the respondents that might lead to the specific objective. The researchers then presented graphical description and tabulation of data. The first part was be collated through a demographic data of the respondents table. The second part was tabulated and charted to analyze the patterns of social media usage. The mean attitude scores were measured in the third part through a Likert scale. The average was then computed to analyze the data. The five responses were assigned the following numerical value: Table 3.Likert Scale Numerical Value Strongly Agree

Agree

Undecided

Disagree

Strongly Disagree

In the fourth part, the researchers determined how many percent of the respondents were affected by the pictures that were presented and related the data to that of the ones gathered in the first (demographics) and second part (consumption and motivations). For the FGD and FI, the researchers organized the answers of the respondents into respective tables that were grouped according to the similarity of the answers. The key informantsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; views were placed in this thesis the same way. Lastly, for the video, it will be uploaded online in Youtube for sharing on different social media sites.

CHAPTER V RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

This chapter discusses the findings of the study according to its specific objectives. The first section talks about the social media consumption patterns among selected Filipino youth who were the respondents of the study. The second section discusses the informantsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; views on social media use as a source of depression. The third section presents data on the factors that makes social media depressing to some youth users. The fourth section focuses on the negative effects of social media on a userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mentality contributing to depression. The fifth objective which is to spread

awareness about Social Media Depression will be discussed briefly in the next subheading. The data that were analyzed and decoded in this chapter were both from the quantitative and qualitative research methods that were used, survey, Focus Group Discussion and interviews.

1. Video Infographic Production The contents of the video infographic were based on the data that will be discussed in the following sections of this chapter. The role of the video is to spread awareness about the phenomenon of Social Media Depression and the ways it can be prevented. The prevention is discussed in the last part of Section D. The video infographic was conceptualized by the researchers of this thesis. The animation was edited through the Adobe Flash software. Preliminary edits were made by the researchers, and it was improved by a professional animator. The video ifographic will be uploaded in Youtube and shared across different social media platforms. A copy is available in the CD attached at the back of this thesis.

A. Social Media Consumption Patterns among Selected Filipino Youth The goal of this objective is to identify in what particular way the Filipino youth consume social media. The distinct social media consumption patterns of the Filipino youth might influence how social media can have a certain effect on the selected respondents. The foundation of this objective is Elihu Katzâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Uses and Gratifications Theory which explains that a particular media can have different effects on different people based on their consumption patterns and motivations of use.

1. Profile of survey respondents The survey was created with Google Docs, and was distributed primarily through Facebook where most people are online. It consisted of demographics at the first part requiring personal information from the 100 respondents. Those who were qualified to answer are 15-30 years old as defined by the constitution as the youth of the Philippines. Respondents aged 20 years old were the age group with the highest number to participate in the survey at 34% of the overall 100 respondents. The next biggest group of respondents at 17% were aged 21 years old. Those below 20 years old total to 31% of the overall number of respondents. While respondents aged 25, 27, 28, and 29 have only one respondent each and none for 30 years old. Figure 4 shows the age composition of the respondents. Figure 4.Respondentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Age Composition 40

30 20 10

17 10

0 15

4 26

Majority of the respondents were female

Figure 5.Respondentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Gender Composition

at 53%. Male respondents constitute 43%. Four 4

percent (4%) of the total sample belonged to the LGBT category. Please see Figure 5 to see the

Female 53

gender composition of the respondents.

Male Other

The respondents also had varying occupations as shown on Figure 6. Most of them were college students constituting 60% of the whole number of respondents. Employees come next at 23% followed by high school students at 16%. There was also one entrepreneur from the respondents. From this, it can be inferred that from High School students to working professionals, anyone can be hooked with social media. The platform is not only popular amongst the students; it is also widely used by older and established individuals for their own varying motivations of use. College students were the largest group of people for the reason that the researchers were college students themselves, and most of their friends online where they distributed the survey were college students as well. Figure 6.Respondentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Educational Attainment/Occupation

Entrepreneur

High School Student

Employee

College Student

60 0

Since the scope of the study was the Filipino youth, the researchers surveyed anyone from the Philippines as long as he/she is in the age bracket of 20-30 years old 60

and a social media user. Majority of them were from Cebu at 55%, followed by Bohol at 30%. The other places constituted of only 15% in total. Please see Figure 7. Figure 7.Frequency Distribution of Respondents according to Residence

Surigao del Sur Pangasinan Laguna Iloilo Cavite Butuan Baguio Leyte Manila Bohol Cebu

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 6 30 55 0

2. Social Media Use Facebook is the most popular social media site and has the widest reach (Tandoc, Ferucci, and Duffy, 2015). This statement had been proven true by this research. All of the respondents agreed to use Facebook. Of the choices that were presented, Facebook is used by 100% of the respondents of the survey. Youtube followed next at 80% of the respondents. It can be inferred from this data that Facebook is the most popular social media platform among the Filipino youth. Facebook has a lot of features for socializing, entertainment, information gathering and promotion. Youtube on the other hand offers a multitude of videos from its vast number of users, from selfmade bloggers offering a glimpse of their daily lives to big artists promoting their latest musical videos. The least used social media site was Ask.fm at 21%. Ask.fm had contributed to a lot of cyber bullying cases as mentioned in Chapter I of this thesis. Figure 8 shows the 61

different social media preferences of the respondents. They were instructed to check all the social media that they use. Figure 8.Social Media Accounts

Note: Multiple Response

On more than six hours of use, Facebook was the most popular at 16% of the respondents, while Pinterest was the least at 0%. For four to six hours of use, Facebook still had the most respondents at 23%, while Pinterest was still the least at 0% again. For two to four hours of use, Facebook gained the most respondents at 27%, and the least was Tumblr at 1%. For one to two hours, Facebook led once again at 24% of the respondents, and again Pinterest was the least used at 3%. For zero to one hour, Google+ was with the most respondents at 33%, and Youtube was the least at 9%. From the data gathered, it can be concluded that Facebook is the most timeconsuming social media. It is generally used by the Filipino youth in between one hour to more than six hours. Pinterest is the least popular social media site among those that were mentioned. Pinterest lets users search for beautiful photographies, they can also post their own creations but will seldom get noticed on its bulletin platform. The respondents generally spend an hour at most at Google+ just enough time to check and send emails. It is seldom for the respondents to spend just between zero to one hour at Youtube. Users can really get hooked with the videos in Youtube especially with their relevant video suggestions that the system learns through your recent searches. Please 62

see Table 4 for the different consumption lengths of the respondents on different social medias. Table 4. Time Spent on Social Media

Social

More than 6

Media

hours

4-6 hours

2-4 hours

1-2 hours

0-1 hour

Facebook

Youtube

Instagram

Twitter

Google+

9gag

Tumblr

Ask.fm

Others

Note: Multiple Response

Based on the survey, the researchers have gathered that majority of the repondents prefer using social media on the afternoons and evenings (12PM-11PM) than on dawns and mornings (12AM-11AM). Fifty-four percent (54%) chose hours on the afternoons and evenings, while 35% chose hours on dawns and mornings. Instead of going to sleep immediately, the modern Filipino youth usually stays up for minutes or hours scrolling across his/her social media account. In the morning he/she wakes up irritable, and if this goes on again and again it might lead to more long-term mood effects.

The specific time with the most respondents was seven and eight in the evening at 18% each of them. The least favorite hours for logging in was at one and two at dawn and three on the afternoon and eleven on the evening, with 0% respondents. Eleven percent (11%) or 15 respondents also indicated that they have no definite time when it comes to accessing their social media accounts. The figures donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t add up to 100% because the respondents can indicate more than one answer. This is shown in Figure 9. Figure 9.Frequency Distribution of Respondents According to their Time for Logging In

Ninety-three percent (93%) of the respondents accessed their social media accounts through their smart phones. Smart phones have made social media more accessible. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s become so easy to get connected with the world with a gadget that can be held in the palm of the hand, and this has generally increased the consumption of social media. The least used gadget for accessing social media is a Tablet with 30% respondents. The different types of access of the respondents are shown on Figure 10.

Figure 10.Type of Access

Majority of the respondents (59%) said that they were active users as they regularly interacted with their friends or followers in their social media accounts. Fiftynine percent (59%) of the respondents were active users. On the other hand, 45% of the respondents agreed to being passive social media users as they just browse through their news feeds or their friends’ profiles. Buxmann and Krasnova (2013) have made findings on their study that passive usage of social media or “content consumption”, “social searching” and “social browsing” as they call it are likely to aggravate feelings of envy to social media users. Please see Figure 11 for the different types of social media use. Figure 11.Type of Use

3. Motivations of Use Almost all of the respondents (94%) agreed to using social media to keep in touch with friends. Ninety-four percent (94%) said they use social media to keep in touch with friends. This result was consistent with the findings of Basilisco and Cha (2015) that Filipinos use Facebook mainly to keep in touch with their family, loved ones and friends. However, in the survey, to keep in touch with family only had 72% respondents. Perhaps because the youth who were the respondents were more likely to be living together with their family still, and therefore did not have to keep in touch through social media only. Eighty-five percent (85%) of the respondents also go online to be updated with events. To check pictures and videos is another motivation with a big number of respondents at 71%. Another is to post updates at 62%. The motivations for school matter and to seek information about others each have 61% respondents. To play games has the lowest respondents at 26% from the options mentioned. Facebook before was big for its games, but today Facebook games are not so popular anymore. In fact there have been many statuses about irritated users receiving multiple game invites regularly. From the answers gathered, it can be concluded that social media is primarily used for socializing and to be kept updated; other reasons contributed a small amount only as motivations for its users. The respondentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; answers can be seen on Figure 12.

Figure 12.Reasons for Social Media Use

Note: Multiple Response

B. Views on Social Media Use as a Source of Depression

1. Attitude towards Social Media Depression The second objective determines the respondentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; views on social media as a source of depression. They were asked questions to determine the negative effects associated with social media use. A Likert scale was used to measure their attitude on the phenomenon of Social Media Depression based on their answers. This range of mean attitude scores was used: 1.0- 1.5 = very disagreeable or negative to the statement 1.6- 2.5 = disagreeable 2.6- 3.5 = undecided 3.6 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 4.5 = agreeable 4.6- 5.0 = very agreeable or positive to the statement 67

The first question was to measure their attitude on whether social media can make them feel depressed. Figure 13 shows distribution of the answers. It can be seen that 48% of the respondents disagreed with the statement, while strongly agree accounts for only 1%. The mean attitude score was 2.31. From this score, it can be gathered that people disagreed with the statement that social media is a cause of depression for them. Figure 13.Answers on Social Media as Cause of Depression

The second statement was regarding whether the respondents get sad on what they see on their newsfeeds, rather than on what happens to them online. It can be seen on Figure 14 that almost half of the respondents at 49% disagree with the statement, strongly agree has the least respondents at 3% The mean attitude score was 2.06. This score means that the respondents disagreed that what they see on their newsfeeds make them sad. Figure 14.Answers on Newsfeed Content as Source of Depression

The third statement implied that happy posts made on social media have the opposite effect on the respondents. Forty percent (40%) of them said that they disagree followed by 32% who strongly disagreed, while 2% said that they strongly agree with the statement. This is shown in Figure 15. The mean attitude score was 2.11. Again the attitude of the respondents on happy posts on social media as a cause of sadness was disagreement. Figure 15.Answers on Happy Posts as Cause of Sadness

The fourth statement was all about the respondentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; views on themselves feeling sad about othersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; achievements posted in social media. Shown on Figure 16, the number of people who disagreed lessened at 35% compared to the answers on previous statements. Those who strongly disagreed come next at 22%. There is a growth in the number who answered agree. Only 3% answered strongly agree. The mean attitude score was 2.44, the attitude of the respondents on othersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; achievements as cause of sadness was still disagreement.

Figure 16.Answers on Achievements of Others and Comparison as Cause of Sadness

The fifth statement gauged whether respondents tend to get sad because of the lack of attention they get on social media. Shown on Figure 17, most of the respondents went with strongly disagree at 35% followed by disagree at 32%. Once again, the least respondents went to strongly agree at 2%. The mean attitude score was 2.14. Once again this score shows an attitude of disagreement from the respondents when it came to the statement that small likes, comments and shares can cause sadness. Figure 17.Answers on Small Likes, Comments, and Shares as Cause of Sadness

The sixth and last statement implied that negative comments can make social media users feel sad. Figure 18 shows a new pattern which is different from the previous statements. Most of the respondents at 30% agreed with the statement. There was an amazing increase in those who answered â&#x20AC;&#x153;strongly agreeâ&#x20AC;? at 20%.The least amount of respondents was at strongly disagree at 12%.

The mean attitude score was 3.33. This score means that the respondents’ attitude towards negative comments as a cause of sadness was neutral. Figure 18.Answers on Negative Comments as Cause of Depression

Overall there were five disagreements, and one neutral attitude on the statements that were presented. The statements that the respondents disagreed on were about depression, jealousy, feelings of neglect and comparison which are sensitive topics that the respondents might not be too open with revealing. The neutrality on the statement related to cyberbullying on the other hand may be due to the fact that it is an existing issue which has already been tackled a lot of times which is why the respondents are more open about it. In the next pages, some of the individuals who answered “strongly agree” and “agree” on the statement that they get depressed when using social media were interviewed to get useful insights regarding this existing phenomenon and why it’s not as well-known as it should be.

2. Views on Social Media Depression To gain more insights on the topic of Social Media Depression, a Focus Group Discussion with nine respondents who also answered the survey was conducted. They were all youth from Cebu since it would not be convenient if respondents from other regions were invited. All of them were from UP Cebu since they were the only ones who accepted the invitation because UP was the venue for the discussion. These 71

respondents were chosen based on their answers on the statements presented above. What can be concluded from their answers was that they think that social media does not cause depression for them in any way at all. Thus this first and only FGD batch is labelled as the group without Social Media Depression. Please see Appendix E for the consent form they signed to allow us to publish their real names in this thesis. Table 5.FGD Group without Social Media Depression Personal Profile Informants

Age

Gender

Educational Attainment/ Occupation

Jill Lapiceros

Female

BS Management – III

Donna Mae Ocmeja

Female

BA Mass Communication – IV

Paulo Salada

Gay

BA Mass Communication – IV

Joelie Ann Pada

Female

BA Mass Communication – IV

Rica Isabel Dupal

Female

BS Management – III

Hyacinth Blaise Tan

Female

BS Management – III

Angelito Ortiz

Gay

BS Biology Alumnus

Jay Juvah F. Estole

Male

BS Math – I

Precilla R. Ibanez

Female

BS Management – III

There was supposed to be two batches of FGDs, one for those without Social Media Depression and another for those with Social Media Depression. But, the researchers realized that those with Social Media Depression would want some privacy due to the personal sensitivity of what is being tackled. With this, the researchers decided to have Focus Interviews on each of them. Again these people were chosen based on their answers on the survey. The researchers judged them to seem to have Social Media Depression only if they answer strongly agree or agree to the strongest statement that indicated Social Media Depression which was “You feel depressed when you use your social media account/s.”

Only one respondent answered strongly agree, and seven answered agree. Of these eight individuals, two of them did not leave names nor contact details. The researchers invited the remaining six. One did not reply, so five informants were left. The three were interviewed in person and the two of them through text just to maintain their anonymity at their request. All of them requested to be anonymous in this thesis. This Focus Interview group is composed of individuals who seem to experiencing Social Media Depression, so they will be labelled as the individuals with Social Media Depression. Please see Table 6 for their personal information sans the names. Table 6.FI Group with Social Media Depression Personal Profile Informant

Age

Gender

Educational Attainment/ Occupation

Informant A

Female

BA Psychology – III

Informant B

Male

Content Writer

Informant C

Female

Creative Writing Adviser

Informant D

Female

BS Business Administration Finance Management – IV

Informant E

Female

BA Mass Communication – IV

a. Awareness on Social Media Depression Both the FGD group without Social Media Depression and the FI individuals with Social Media Depression were asked on their awareness on Social Media Depression. All of the individuals agreed that they know of this phenomenon, but those without Social Media Depression and those with Social Media Depression encountered different ways in coming to light with this issue. Those without Social Media Depression were aware of the phenomenon based on what they have observed from other people. They also have some takes on why this

issue might not be discussed much in the open. Here are some direct quotes from the informants: Kitang tanan kay naa say tendency nga ingun-ana gani nga kanang mas mu-prefer ta nga mag-present sa atong selves in a better way, a positive way, sa laing taw. (Donna) [All of us have the tendency to do the same, present ourselves in a better positive way in front of other people.] Another informant said: Kanang wala na sa atong kultura na ma sad ka, dapat happy ka pirmi. (Angelito) [It’s not anymore in our culture to be sad, you always have to be happy.] This was echoed by another informant who said: I think tungod pud lage na siya sa kadtong conformity, nga tan-aw niya sa iyang timeline kay happiness lang, lain ug musibag siya, ma sad siya, nya siya ang mura’g kuanan ug focus gani. (Precilla) [I think it’s all because of conformity where they look at their timeline (social media) and it must only be about happiness, it’s not good if they are different ‘cause they are sad and they get the focus because of this.] This was generally agreed on by the other informants. Another theorized: I think kahibaw man ang mga tao ana daan pero they tend to ignore it because, especially sa Filipinos kay naa man gud ta’y culture of happiness nga kanang murag, “Oi! Di ka dapat ma sad.”(Angelito) [I think people already know about it (Social Media Depression), but they tend to ignore it because as Filipinos we have a culture of happiness like “Hey! You must not be sad.”] However, the five informants with Social Media Depression revealed that they know of Social Media Depression based on their own personal experience. They had varying reasons for feeling this way whenever they use their social media account/s and

this will be discussed in the next subchapter. Please see Matrix 2 for the awareness on Social Media Depression by people without and people with Social Media Depression.

Matrix 2.Youth’s Awareness of Social Media Depression Without Social Media Depression

With Social Media Depression (FIs)

(FGD) •

Social Media Depression is present based on what they can

•

Knows it from personal experience. (5 out of 5)

observe from their friends or acquaintances. However, people

I know this from experience, some of my

tend to hide it to conform to what

friends’ experiences and through

society wants. (9 out of 9)

anecdotal evidence, like stories from other people. (Informant B)

Feel nako kay tanan ta aware nga there are people judngaing-ana, nga they tend

I think I can base it on personal

to present themselves bitaw as positive

experience. I myself, an avid user of social

when in fact sailang real life kay

media sites, encounter posts that make

dilimaoilanggina-experience. (Donna)

me feel sad or worse, depressed.

[I feel that we are all aware that there are

(Informant E)

people like that who tend to present themselves positively when in real life it’s not what they’re experiencing at all.]

b. Views on Social Media Depression Both the group without Social Media Depression and those with Social Media Depression were asked for their opinion about Social Media Depression. Please see Matrix 3 to see their different constructs or views regarding the issue. Of those without Social Media Depression, 5 over 9 of them admitted that they have the tendency to look at the number of likes in their posts, but they don’t get depressed from it. The other 4 said that they are not very active in the social media scene, thus they can’t gauge any effect on themselves as much. However, the general view of the group is that the recent popularity of social media really has contribution to the increasing number of depressed individuals. Here are some direct quotes from the FGD:

Murag di ko kaingon kay basin na redefine na ang happiness and yeah, mao to. Basin, basin naka-contribute, naa’y part. Naa gyud nay part. (Paulo) [I can’t say because maybe the meaning of happiness is redefined, and yeah it’s that. Maybe, maybe it can contribute, it has a part. It really has a part.]

“Mura’gnaasiguru’ymusudsaatonga “nganudiaygamayra may likes? Dili siya likeable nga post? Unsay ilang gusto ngai-post nako para daghanang mu-like?” Pero dili necessarily nga nag-mean nana siyanga depressed nako. Wala lang, mura’g natural rasiyasa taw ngamura’g maggain ug something from others. (Donna) [It gets in our heads “Why is there only a few likes? Isn’t this a likeable post? What would they like me to post for it to have more likes?” But, this does not necessarily mean that I’m depressed. It’s just natural for people to gain something from others.]

Those with Social Media Depression agreed that the phenomenon really exists, and one even pointed out that more people should know about it: I think there aren’t enough people who are aware of this phenomenon. (Informant E)

Matrix 3.Youth’s Construction of Social Media Depression Without Social Media Depression

With Social Media Depression (FI)

(FGD) •

Social media can have

•

Social Media Depression is a

negative effects, but not to the

very real phenomenon. (5 out of

extent of depression. (5 out of

9) Maka contribute siya pero dili

Dugay na man ko nag-think nga mag-

siya the main reason why taas

deactivate, but mura’g di man kaya kay

ang number sa kanang mga

dira biya mag-post ug mga updates.

depressed na people. (Joelie)

(Informant A)

[It can contribute, but it is not

[I have been thinking about deactivating

the main reason why the

(social media account/s), but I think I

number of depressed people

can’t handle it because it’s where they

is increasing.]

post updates (school stuff, announcements, etc.)]

•

Not very active in social media, thus, does not get affected as much. (4 out of 9)

Dili ko ingun maka-relate sa Social Media Depression kay dili kay ko kuan sa Facebook kung naa man gali update ako’ng Facebook is kanang gi-tag lang sa ako or kanang events. (Joelie) [I can’t really relate to Social Media Depression because I’m not very active in Facebook. If there is an update on my Facebook, it’s because someone tagged me or because of events.

C. Factors that Make Social Media Depressing to Some Youth Users This third objective helped us determine which factors in social media platforms can turn it into a depressive place to some of its users. By determining the factors, the researchers will be able to provide ways to prevent the negative effects of social media. The preventions will be discussed in the next chapter after discussing the indirect factors.

a. Results from the Survey In the survey instrument, an item was included in which the respondents had to choose a situation presented by different screen captures which they are mostly to get sad with. The situations that were presented were based on what has been found as factors in the review of related literature (Please see Figure 19). Based on the survey,

82.8% of the respondents get sad when their messages are just seen on Facebook. The least respondents at 9.7% is on the situation that shows an Instagram account with just a few likes, comments, and follows side by side an account with generally more of the same. There were 18 respondents who put in social media situations that make them sad that were not in the options. Sixteen answered that they get sad due to upsetting posts they come across. The other two had different answers. One answered “my x” (my ex gf/bf), and the other answered about someone blocking her. These answers helped us in determining the topics to be discussed in the FGD and interviews. They also added insights on the factors that the researchers will be discussing further in this subchapter except for “negative questions on Ask.fm” which will be discussed in the next subchapter under cyberbullying which is an indirect factor. Figure 19.Answers on Which Situations can Make Respondents Sad

b. What the Key Informants Say To gain more expert opinions regarding the psychology behind Social Media Depression, the researchers interviewed two key informant psychologists separately. They gave us plenty of insights regarding the factors that might be the cause of Social Media Depression. Please see Table 7 for further information on the key informants.

Table 7.Key Informant Psychologists Personal Profile Name

Age

Gender

Occupation

Dr. Priscilla “Peachy”

Female

Clinical Psychologist at Rainbow Playroom

Female

Clinical Psychologist at Psychiatry

Gonzalez-Fernando Dr. Conchita S. Olasiman

Department, Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center

Each factor the researchers have gathered will be discussed further in separate sections. Matrices showing the different opinions of the informants will be presented. The general thought will be summarized into a bulleted sentence with the fraction of the informant/s with congruent statements followed by a direct quotation which best expresses the view. If for example the fraction is four out of five for the Focus Interview of individuals with Social Media Depression, it does not mean that the other one out of five has a different opinion. If no other bulleted summary follows, it means that the other person did not give or was vague in delivering his/her views.

1. Envy Envy was one of the main factors considered to be the reason for social media to cause depression in previous studies related to this thesis. The informants of this study generally agreed that social media can indeed cause envy. All of the informants in the group without Social Media Depression said that they have observed people who tend to get envious with their friends in their social media accounts. But, the informants have no way of gauging whether the observed people get depressed from this since they’ve only heard them say statements like: “Wow ka nice ani niya’g life oi” [Wow he/she has a really nice life]

“Mag-ignani sad ko bi” [I’ll do this] “Kani siya bai kay nindot ni siya og feed” [This one has a nice feed] (observed by Joelie) However, four out of five of the individuals with Social Media Depression admitted that envy is one of the primary causes for their depressive tendencies whenever they use their social media account/s. Informant C pointed out some examples: Posts that boast or show off about events or things (ex. beach/ getaway, travels, new gadgets). (Informant C) The key informant psychologists pointed out that it’s natural for humans to compare themselves with others. But what social media does however is highlight the achievements of your friends or acquaintances. Dr. Peachy put it into words really well: It’s possibly magnified now ten thousands of times because you see so many friends you don’t even see anymore and then you see all their pictures. Before naman, you don’t say “Look, we went to Japan.” (Dr. Peachy, Personal Communication 20/3/2016) Social media can indeed cause envy to some people as it puts into the spotlight the “highlights” of a person’s life. Please see Matrix 4 for the differing views of the informants regarding envy as a cause for Social Media Depression.

Matrix 4.Views on Envy as a Factor Causing Social Media Depression Without Social Media

With Social Media

Key informant

Depression

Psychologists

•

Observed people

•

Envied other

•

Social media

who tend to get

people’s lifestyles (4

highlights positive

envious on social

out of 5)

aspects in life that

media (9 out of 9)

cause one to feel Seeing other people doing

envy and wonder

Mo–react ka ana nga

well in life. I start to envy

over other peoples’

happy picture like “Hala oi

them and their

happenings and

maayo pa siya kay ing-

achievements. Also, social

accomplishments (2

ana” Mura’g masuya ka or

media tends to have its own

out of 2)

ma-envy. (Rica)

norms that you feel the

[You react to that happy

need to comply to it and if

Even us we will admit, “Uy

picture like “they’re lucky

you can’t you feel

buti pa siya, nag ja-Japan,

because so-and-so” you

frustrated. (Informant E)

ano kaya sweldo nito? Bakit

get jealous or envious

siya nakaka-Japan?” I

somewhat.]

would say theoretically that many of the dynamics that have been there before like envy or shame or feeling bad about yourself is super magnified. (Dr. Peachy) [Even us we will admit, “They’re better they went to

Japan. How much are their salaries? How can they afford Japan?â&#x20AC;? I would say theoretically that many of the dynamics that have been there before like envy or shame or feeling bad about yourself is super magnified.]

2. Number of Likes, Comments, Followers, etc. Number of likes, comments, followers and other social media indicators of how famous or appreciated you are by people is also one of the factors that was mentioned in related studies. However, according to the survey (see Figure 19) only 9.7%, the least percentage, of the respondents answered that they get sad with the situation showing an Instagram account with only a few likes and followers side by side an account with more likes and followers. On another situation showing a screen capture of a Facebook post with only the with only the person who posted it himself/herself liking his/her own post, more respondents agreed to getting sad with this situation at 17.2%. This indicates that most social media users get affected with likes, comments, and followers not because of comparison with others, but because they just want to be noticed or appreciated. I feel like "rejected" or something. I dunno, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m [sic] so not used to being left behind I feel neglected and forgotten.

It makes me seem uninteresting [sic] and unimportant to other people in my social network Decreases my self-esteem (Respondents) Six over nine of the participants in the group without Social Media Depression revealed that they have observed in others and their own selves that they have the tendency to look at the number of likes on their posts. But, when they get just a few likes, this does not make them depressed. They just have the tendency to observe which kinds of posts get more likes, and which gets less. One also pointed out that he keeps tabs of the liker and not the number of likes: Usahay kay dili man ang likes imu’ng tan-awn, tan-awn nimo kinsay nilike. Kay bisan daghan kayo og likes nya walani-like ang naigo or ang crush kay wala gihapoy kwenta. Usahay ang quality sa likes kaysa sa quantity ang mu-matter. (Angelito) [Sometimes it’s not the likes that you look at; you look at who likes it. Because even if you get plenty of likes, but the intended or the crush did not like, it’s no good at all. Sometimes it’s the quality of likes instead of the quantity that matters.] Both the key informant psychologists agreed that some people really want to be thrown attention over social media. As humans we want to be liked and appreciated; it just moved from the concrete world to the virtual world as pointed out by Dr. Peachy. The individuals with Social Media Depression did not mention likes, comments, followers, etc. as one of the factors that trigger them to feel depressed. It might be because this factor does not affect them as much. It could also be that they don’t want to be judged as shallow individuals for hinging their self-worth on virtual buttons. Please see Matrix 5 for the informants’ views on this factor of Social Media Depression.

Matrix 5.Views on Likes, Comments, Follows, etc. as a Factor Causing Social Media Depression Without Social Media

With Social Media

Key informant

Depression

Psychologists

•

Informants tend to

None of the respondents

see which posts get

with Social Media

really want to be

liked and which don’t

Depression talked about

appreciated in

get likes (6 out of 9)

this factor.

social media (2 out

Some people

of 2) Honestly naay personality nako nga mutan-aw ko sa

You know, it just moved

likes, seriously. Mugawas

from the concrete world to

gyud na sa akoa nga—like

the virtual world but now

somehow mag-una ko sa

self-esteem is linked to

ako’ng huna-huna ba nga

likes, followers, comments

“pila kaha ni kabuok likes

and adolescence and

ang kuan sa”. (Juvah)

young adults, it’s a

[Honestly I have this

sensitive time. (Dr.

tendency to look at the

Peachy)

likes, seriously. It always enters my mind first like “how much likes would I get for this”.

3. Seen or Ignored Message/s Seen or ignored message/s is the third factor that the informants mentioned which might trigger Social Media Depression. This factor was not mentioned in related literature that the researchers have reviewed. Seen or ignored message/s is different from the situation mentioned above about no likes or comments on a post. This focuses more on direct or private messages that are â&#x20AC;&#x153;seenâ&#x20AC;? or not replied back by the person being messaged over social media. In the survey (see Figure 19), seen messages accounts as the factor with the most number of respondents at 82.8% who picked this as the situation that can make them feel sad over social media. Here are some direct quotes from the respondents who answered this as the situation most likely to make them sad: Because it means that the person you left a message ignores you or doesn't want to talk to you. It makes me feel worthless, like I'm just a waste of time, a bother. Seen messages are heart-breaking. He/she have read what I said out, still chose not to reply. Because it is disrespectful. Because you wanted to talk but they wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t keep in touch. Because people should react something like an emoji or something just yknow [sic] don't leave me hanging. No response to a sincere message sucks, especially if it could be a long time close friend. (Respondents)

These were some of the statements that the respondents wrote on why they chose seen messages as the most likely situation to make them sad over social media. Only two out of nine of those without Social Media Depression gave their opinions on this matter. One striking message of the respondents was: “Sakit bitaw maseen (It hurts to be seen).” She was referring to the “seen” notice that appears when a person opens your message, sees it, but does not bother to reply. This might be because social media is a platform where people expect to socialize, interact, and communicate with their peers, but instead they get ignored. This can never happen in real life, as it would be rude or weird for a person to not respond to a statement directed at him/her. One informant from the individuals with Social Media Depression also mentioned about getting ignored over social media. While Precilla mentioned how the person could have at least sent an emoticon, Informant D also mentioned how the person could have at least sent a period. It’s the thought that they could not be bothered to make even the shortest replies that hurts the informants’ feelings. The key informants did not mention anything about this factor. Please see Matrix 6 for the informants’ views on this factor.

Matrix 6.Seen or Ignored Message/s as a Factor Causing Social Media Depression Without Social Media

With Social Media

Key informant

Depression

Psychologists

•

Seen messages (2 out of 9)

•

Not getting noticed

Both of the key informant

by people you value

psychologists did not

(1 out of 5)

mention this factor.

Mura’g ma-feel nako kay

“Unsa diay ako’ng message

Pungot sad kay mura’g

diay? Dili diay importante?”

maanad na ka magchat-

bisan lang gud replyan lang

chat mo maghuwat ka

ko’g smiling face ba. Sakit

taman mo chat siya pero

bitaw ma-seen. (Precilla)

wa gyud bisag tuldok na

[I would feel like “What’s

lang! Mao mura’g down

with my message? Is it not

kayo ka kay nag-expect

important?” They could just

man ka. (Informant D)

reply a smiling face. It hurts

[Angry because you get

to be seen.]

used to chatting with them, then you really wait for them, but there’s not even a single period! Your mood gets really low because you were expecting.]

4. Negative Content Negative content is another factor that was not mentioned in related studies the researchers have reviewed. Negative content can be (1) sad news or posts or (2) dumb, stupid and ignorant content. In the survey (please see Figure 19), the respondents were presented different social media situations which can potentially make them sad. They were given the “other” option so they can provide their own answer. Sixteen out of eighteen of the respondents put negative content as the reason that cause them to feel sad when they use their social media account/s. These are some of the informants’ direct quotes on sad news or posts:

Bad news from relatives. Mga luoy na video and pictures [sad videos and pictures] Sometimes when I see sad photos quotes or people having bad days When i see posts about how degraded people now are morally

Some respondents pointed out what they consider to be stupid, dumb, ignorant posts: Stupid posts, stupid people posting, annoying propaganda, ugly girls posting selfies, ugly girls thinking they are pretty, jejemons, cringeworthy people, young mothers posting baby pictures every fucking day, false information being shared by people too dumb to be skeptical or too dumb to use google or too dumb to read educated comments Offensive and Vulagr [sic] words. Posting unnecessary and private information.

One of the informants without Social Media Depression also mentioned about sad news that happens all over the world and how it has the tendency to affect the user. Three out of five of the informants with Social Media Depression mentioned about “stupid” posts over social media which made them angry. This negative content is more on frustrating than saddening, but Informant B explained how this can make her feel sad: If you’re angry you tend to be sad daw afterwards kay murasiya’g process. Kay your body cannot maintain daw the anger or high intensity emotions mau ng masad sila. Mura’g mostly kay ilahangmga status—murabitaw’gang disappointment nimosamga people.Angilahang preferences kay maka-sadden pudsiya.

(Informant B) [If you’re angry you tend to be sad because it’s like a process. Because your body cannot maintain the anger or high intensity emotions, that’s why they get sad. It’s mostly their statuses—it’s like your disappointment in people. Their preferences can sadden too.]

The key informant psychologists did not mention anything about negative content over social media. Please see Matrix 7 for the informants’ views on this factor.

Matrix 7.Negative Content as Factor Causing Social Media Depression Without Social Media

With Social Media

Key informant

Depression

Psychologists

•

Dumb or upsetting

Both of the key informant

but what they see

posts by other

psychologists did not

that affects them (1

people (3 out of 5)

mention this factor.

Not what happens,

out of 9) High intensity emotions Kana ganing inig tan-aw

because I see stupid

nimo sa imong newsfeed

people a lot. Ilahang mga

kay puros lage ni bad

status, and things that

news... naay massacre,

shouldn’t be posted on

naay kuan, so murag mao

Facebook are posted.

akoa, na daghana diayng

(Informant A)

problema sa world ngana

[High intensity emotions

ganina peg so mura’g ikaw

because I see stupid

sad kay naa bayay

people a lot. Their

tendency na ma-affect ka.

statuses, and things that

(Joelie)

shouldn’t be posted in

[When you check your

Facebook are posted.]

newsfeed it’s all bad news... there’s massacre, there’s something, so for me I can see that there are so many problems in the world. And you have the tendency to get affected by it.]

5. Inner Psycho-emotional Conditions This fifth factor is a very important factor as it determines the validity of the other factors that were mentioned. Is social media really the cause or does it merely aggravate existing inner psycho-emotional conditions of a person? Can the platform really cause depression or does it only make an already depressed individual more depressed? Of the 100 respondents who answered the survey, the researchers only considered those who answered strongly agree/agree in the question “You feel depressed when you use your social media account/s” as the people who claim to have Social Media Depression, there were 8. The researchers used Beck’s Depression Inventory (BDI) to gauge their depression in real life. BDI, invented by Aaron T. Beck, is a 21-question inventory widely used to measure the severity of depression. The researchers used the latest revision which is BDI-II. The respondents were asked to pick one answer in multiple choice questions, each answer is assigned its own weight and

the overall score means the following (please see Appendix D for further details on scoring instructions): 0-10 = These ups and downs are considered normal 11-16 = Mild mood disturbance 17-20 = Borderline clinical depression 21-30 = Moderate depression 31-40 = Severe depression over 40 = Extreme depression Six out of the eight respondents who claim to have Social Media Depression have mild mood disturbance, borderline clinical depression and moderate depression, the other two were normal (see Table 8). Other respondents with higher BDI scores did not strongly agree or agree with the statement that they feel depressed using their social media/s. What can be gathered from this is that individuals with Social Media Depression are mostly dealing with depression in real life, but individuals who have depression in real life do not necessarily have to get depressed online; their virtual lives can be their escape. In conclusion, Social Media Depression can affect anyone at all, but mostly those who have depressive tendencies. Table 8.Individuals with Social Media Depression BDI Scores Respondent

BDI Score

Level of Depression (BDI)

Informant A

Moderate depression

Informant B

Normal

Informant C

Mild mood disturbance

Informant D

Moderate depression

Informant E

Mild mood disturbance

Informant F

Normal

Informant G

Mild mood disturbance

Informant H

Borderline clinical depression

Three over nine of the respondents without Social Media Depression believe that it’s the user’s mentality which can cause Social Media Depression. Four out of the five respondents with Social Media Depression also believe that it is what’s within them that cause social media to have a negative effect on them. But, one over five of them believes that it is the platform alone that brings about depressive tendencies. The psychologists believe more on the psychological effects of social media as the reason for it to be depressing. Once again these differing views indicate that indeed social media can contribute to anyone’s depression. But, the four out of five individuals who claimed to have social media depression believe that their inner conditions are in the works, prove that people who already have depressive tendencies in real life are more prone to get depressed online. Please see Matrix 8 for the informants’ views on inner psycho-emotional as the trigger that merely aggravates depression in social media use.

Matrix 8. Inner Psycho-emotional Conditions as a Factor Causing Social Media Depression Without Social Media

With Social Media

Key informant

Depression

Psychologists

•

Depends on a

•

Social media merely

•

More on the

person’s

aggravates pre-

indirect

disposition (3 out

existing depression.

psychological

of 9)

(4 out of 5)

effects (2 out of 2)

Feel nako kay sa...

How we feel is somehow a

depende sad na sa tao oi

result of how we interpret the

That could be

if iyang... sa iyang

things we see in social

depressing because of

personality jud nga

media. (Informant E)

misuse, but no, social

ingana jud siya insecure.

media itself is not bad •

Social media alone

or negative. (Dr.

positive and di kayo--aw

causes depression (1

Conchita)

way pake so di kayo siya

out of 5)

If mga tao lang na

maka-trigger og depression. (Donna)

If once nga ma-habit na

[I feel like... it depends on

nimu ang social media, you

the person if... he/she is

tend to lessen your social

insecure. If it’s people

interactions with actual

who are positive, and not

people maka-lead siya’g

so—like don’t care it can’t

depression. Dili siya maka-

trigger depression as

aggravate lang, maka-cause

much.]

gyud siya.(Informant A) [Once social media becomes a habit, you tend to lessen your social interactions with actual people, this can lead to depression. It does not merely aggravate, it can really cause.]

NOTE: As these factors and the negative effects of social media on a userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mentality contributing to depression generally have the same preventive measures discussed by the informants, the prevention part will be discussed in the last part of the next chapter after all factors have been discussed.

D. Negative Effects of Social Media on a Userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Mentality Contributing

to Depression This subchapter discusses further on the factors which may bring about tendency to feel Social Media Depression. However, this will focus on the indirect effects of social media which might lead to depression. It is not social media per se, but rather the effects from its use that will cause Social Media Depression. The researchers chose the following factors because they were said over and over again during the FGD, focused interview and key informant interview.

1. Addiction and Dependency One out of the five informants with Social Media Depression and one of the two psychologists believe that social media is addictive and people can become dependent on it. It can become a personâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s escape from the real world especially when there is nothing good going on in it. Meanwhile, two out of nine FGD respondents believe that becoming addicted to social media can cause someone to neglect usual activities in school and in work. Instead of doing such activities, a person chooses to spend more time using social media.

Moreover, four out of nine FGD respondents agree that having an addiction to social media can cause a person to give up sleep because they become so engrossed by what they see on the platform and they are using and would force themselves to stay up late at night. According to one of the interviews, lack of sleep is stressful and can be a hindrance in doing tasks and activities the next day. Na’ay one time in my life dugay kayo ko natulog dayon pagka-morning unya specially if matudlo-an pa gyud sa teacher, oral report, oral answers “Shet unsa na man ni oi!” Unya mura’g kanang ma-depress kay kanang “Hala wala ko ka-tubag, akong grado tres na gyud ni” (Paulo) [There was a time when I stayed up very late at night and in the next morning, the professor assigns oral reports, oral answers. “What should I do?” and I would feel depressed about it. “Oh no, I failed to answer. My grade will surely be 3.0.” So that’s one of the effects and it can be connected to everything else.] Two of the nine FGD participants and both key informants believe that lack of sleep due to the overuse of social media can lead to irritability. For the informants, one out of five stated that social media is addicting to its users and another one out of five said that becoming addicted to social media affects amount of sleep. (Please see Matrix 9.)

Matrix 9.Addiction and Dependency as Indirect Factor of Social Media Depression Without Social Media

With Social Media

Key informant

Depression

Psychologists

•

Addiction to social

•

Social media is

•

Social media can

media can cause

addicting to its users

be an escape from

procrastination and

(1 out of 5)

the real world (1

disturbance in daily

out of 2)

activities (2 out of

Social media is addictive. If

that’s the case, then people

It’s addicting and the

might develop an unhealthy

problem we have now

“Daghan kay nga activities

addiction to it which may

with adolescents is if their

ma-apektohan kay of

indirectly lead to said

real life isn’t good, then

course nagtan-aw ka,

psychological effects.

the virtual world becomes

imagine wala na kay lain

(Informant B)

their world. (Dr. Peachy)

mabuhat ana sige ra ka’gtanaw” Ang imuhang

•

Lack of sleep due to

•

Addiction leading

multitasking abilities kay

social media

to loss of sleep

wala na. Dili na man ka

addiction (1 out of 5)

can lead to

maka-focus kay tanan

irritability (2 out of

nimung energy diri na so

Having lack of sleep is so

maapektohan gyud imong

stressful especially if you

tibuok life ana. (Angelito)

want to have a lot of things

You tend to stay awake

[A lot of activities will be

done during the day

longer. You tend to stay

affected because you’re on

accomplish just so little.

awake even if you’re tired

social media and you can’t

already and your eyes are

do anything else. Your

(Informant E)

closing and you want to

multi-tasking abilities are

shut it so that would lead

hampered. You can’t focus

to lack of sleep, irritability.

anymore because you

(Dr. Peachy)

spend your energy here (social media). It really affects your whole life.]

•

Addiction to social media can cause someone to give up sleep (4 out of 9)

•

Lack of sleep causes irritability. (2 out of 9)

Dugay mu-sleep then pagka-ugma kay irritable na kaayo ka, yes tinuod na. (Paulo) [Staying up late at night can make you irritable the day after, that’s true]

2. Feelings of Isolation and Lack of Interaction One of the indirect factors of feeling Social Media Depression is the personâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s feeling of being isolated from others. Two out of the five informants who seem to have Social Media Depression believe that using social media can isolate a person from the others including friends, family and society. They tend to be more focused on being on social media that they forget or ignore the presence of people in real life. According to the three of the nine informants who seem to have no Social Media Depression being on social media affects their interaction with people because they do not have the energy to build physical contact with others from becoming too absorbed in whatever platform they are using. On the other hand, one of the key informants opined that if a person is having difficulties in interacting with others outside the virtual world, he/she can turn to social media and isolate oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s self from others. However, even social media can be the cause of disconnection of ties with other people. Even in social media, a person can have the option to unfriend or block someone in an instant. This can be hurtful for the person and causes emotional distress. Once again, interaction with others even through online means is badly affected. Moreover, gadget use can be blamed for isolation and loss of interaction. Gadgets such as smartphones, laptops, computers, notebooks and others are the source of games, apps and social media. According to one of the key informants, being attached to these gadgets lessens a personâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ability to develop physical interactions with others and therefore can be the cause of isolation. (Please see Matrix 10.)

Matrix 10.Feelings of Isolation and Lack of Interaction as Indirect Factor of Social Media Depression Without Social Media

With Social Media

Key informant

Depression

Psychologists

•

Social media can

•

Social media can

•

Isolation makes

lessen physical

isolate a person from

people turn to

interaction. (3 out of

everybody else. (2 out

social media. (1

of 5)

out of 2)

I think maka-contribute

It has a lot of indirect

The other thing that can

naog depression kay like

psychological effects like

cause depression is I

wala kay interaction

disconnected ties with family

wouldn’t really say

especially sa mga people

and friends or isolation.

depression but social

nga gi-value gyud nimo ba

(Informant E)

isolation; that one can

kay tungod lage wala na

really happen. If a person

ka’y energy to interact with

has really a difficulty in

them or to spend time with

real life, with their family

them kay sige lang ka og

or with friends, they could

face sa social media.

go into social media and

(Hyacinth)

stay there. (Dr. Peachy)

[I think it can contribute to depression because you

•

Attachment to

lack interaction especially

gadgets can be

with the people you value

the reason behind

100

because you do not have

isolation. (1 out of

the energy to interact with

them or spend time with them since you are always

Ang ako lang nakit-an sa

on social media.]

akong mga clients, it’s not necessarily social media

•

Unfriending and

because it might be

blocking people on

games. It’s just that kids

Facebook causes

are over gadgetized. They

emotional distress.

become irritable. They

(1 out of 9)

become impatient with the real world. They’re

Another example sad is

impatient with family and

kanangg i-unfriend ka sa

friends. Their social skills

imong friend sauna unya

suffer. So it really leads to

sakit gyud kaayosiya.

social isolation. (Dr.

“Ngano unsa diay ako

Peachy)

gibuhat nganong gi-

[What I notice with my

unfriend ko?” Or i-block

clients, it’s not necessarily

sa—ingana, mga ingana

social media because it

ba block-block ba so sakit

might be games. It’s just

sad kayo siya. (Rica)

that kids are over

[Another sad example also

gadgetized. They become

is when your friend before

irritable. They become

unfriends you (online).

impatient with the real

101

That’s very hurtful. “Why?

world. They’re impatient

What did I do wrong that I

with family and friends.

was unfriended?” Also

Their social skills suffer.

when you get blocked by

So it really leads to social

someone. That’s very

isolation.]

hurtful.

3. High Expectations According to one of the five informants who seem to have Social Media Depression, when a person logs on to social media and sees the good life of others, it makes him/her imagine one for him/herself and ends up having high expectations that sometimes cannot be achieved. The person then feels distressed about it. One of the nine FGD respondents not seeming to have Social Media Depression think that a person has high expectations once he/she logs on to social media. Once these expectations are not met, it can trigger negative emotions. The respondent then suggested lowering these expectations so as not to feel frustrated if such expectations are not met because being frustrated can be the cause of being depressed. (Please see Matrix 11.)

102

Matrix 11.High Expectations as Indirect Factor of Social Media Depression Without Social Media

With Social Media

Key informant

Depression

Psychologists

â&#x20AC;˘

Setting high

Both of the key informant

standards in social

expectations but

psychologists did not

media can avoid

failing to reach them.

mention this factor.

feelings of

(1 out of 5)

Lowering

depression. (1 out of 9)

Yes, it makes you imagine a

Diba kanang na sod naka

sort of false 'ideal lifestyle'

sa social media kay

that involves lots of

daghan kayo ka gi-expect

travelling or buying new

na lingaw or feel nimo kay

things which makes you

maka escape na ka sa

want to aim for a lavish

imong problema so I think

lifestyle but in the long run it

lang gyudi-lower imong

may end up stressing you

expectations para dili ka

out (and making you poor)

ma frustrate. Mao man jud

when you feel like you

nay usually maka lead og

haven't achieved that

depression, nawala na

lifestyle yet. (Informant C)

meet imong expectations. (Angelito) [When you are in social media, you expect that it

103

will be enjoyable and you feel like you have escaped your problems. So I think that you should lower your expectations so that you will not end up being frustrated. Failing to meet your expectations is what usually leads to depression.]

4. Technical Factors According to both of the key informants, being exposed to the gadgets themselves is an indirect psychological factor. They both agree that the brightness of the screen keeps the person up at night. Due to addiction to social media, the person has a hard time putting down his/her gadget down before sleeping. Therefore, he/she is exposed to so much screen brightness. This leads to the delay of sleep because it suppresses the release of melatonin, a hormone responsible for sleep. Since the body needs sleep to repair itself, the person will feel tired and stressed without it, the morning after. (Please see Matrix 12)

104

Matrix 12.Technical Factors as Indirect Factor of Social Media Depression Without Social Media

With Social Media

Key informant

Depression

Psychologists •

None of the respondents

without Social Media

with Social Media

the screen affects

Depression talked about

the body and causes

this factor.

irritability (2 out of 2)

The brightness of

It could be the light and brightness. It’s depressing because it will hamper the melatonin to set in. Tungod sa kahayag, di ka katulgon. Usahay kung sige ka’g duwa og computer, dili ka katulgon or even sige ra ka’g Facebook, di ka katulgon. Now imong stress level is up, sige ka og duwa og next level, next level so dili mo repair ang body. Meaning, kung dili mo repair imong body, you get sick, tired and depressed. (Dr. Conchita)

105

[Well again, it could be the light and brightness. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s depressing because it will hamper the melatonin to set in. Because of the brightness, you have a hard time sleeping. Sometimes if you play too much even use Facebook too much, you will have trouble sleeping. Now your stress level is up but you keep on playing on to the next level and next level. Your body will fail to repair itself and you will get sick, tired and depressed.]

5. Cyberbullying According to both of the key informants, cyberbullying is a major factor that can contribute to depression. Social media allows anonymity and this can be used as a tool to bully a person online because anyone can say anything and get away with it. Since it is so accessible, there is a greater risk for cyberbullying. Out of the 9 FGD respondents, 4 of them knew someone who has experienced cyberbullying. One of the participants knew someone who was bullied on Facebook and this caused the person to do something terrible as he brought a gun to school with him. 106

One person transferred to another school. Clearly, cyberbullying is an alarming issue and as many people are on social media today, the risk only grows. One of the 5 informants who claim to have some media depression had a rude encounter with someone online. In the survey (see Subchapter C, Figure 9), 34.4% of the respondents say that the intention of the bully is to make people sad or feel bad about themselves. The respondents were asked an open-ended question why cyberbullying is the most likely factor to make them sad. Here are some of the answers the respondents wrote: It’s cyberbullying and it makes the user sad. Clearly, the intention of the one asking in ask.fm is to make the person feel bad about him/herself. Matrix 13 shows the informants’ views on cyberbullying in relation to Social Media Depression.

Matrix 13.Cyberbullying as Indirect Factor for Social Media Depression Without Social Media

With Social Media

Key informant

Depression

Psychologists

•

Knows someone

•

Conflicts and rude

•

Cyberbullying is a

with cyberbullying

people in social

major factor that

experience (4 out of

media (2 out of 5)

can contribute to

depression (2 out There was one time

Ang na-happen ato kay

somebody posted

nag-start siya sa Facebook

something against me. It

nga gi-bully siya sa among

was when I won a contest

of 2)

I think it’s really the accessibility which

107

group ra gud, sa amo ra jud

and this person didn’t seem

exposes you to the

class ba. Kana galing

to agree with the

opinions of others whom

sungog-sungog lang. Nya

results.(Informant E)

don’t really know. The

ang nahitabo kay pagka-

problem with social media

ugma ana nagdalasiya’g

also is that people can say

gun sa among room, as in

anything they want. (Dr.

sa amo gyung room. (Rica)

Peachy)

[What happened was that it started in Facebook when

Maybe it’s (social media)

he was bullied in our group,

depressing for a person for

by our class. It was just

some reason like for

teasing. And what

example, bullying. (Dr.

happened was the next day

Conchita)

he brought a gun in our classroom, as in, in our classroom.]

6. Prevention Out of all the informants (FGD participants, interviewees, and key informants), eight opined that putting limitation and control over the use of social media is one way to prevent depressive symptoms. It lessens the user’s exposure to the platform, including all the things that are potentially depressing. By applying limitations, the user can avoid the risk of comparing one’s self to others and becoming envious and avoid reading negative posts created by others and even being bullied online.

108

Moreover, 3 of the 9 FGD respondents said being socially responsible is also a good preventive measure. One must be carefulwith the things that are to be posted online as this can be used against the user. At the same time, “annoying and unhelpful posts that create negativity” (Informant B) can affect other people in their day to day lives. Another way to prevent Social Media Depression is being more sociable. According to 3 out of the 9 FGD respondents, engaging oneself in more personal interaction with others can draw the user’s attention away from the grasp of social media. Mo go out sad ka a little, dili lang kay always lang ka sa imong laptop or sa imong mobile phone, dili lang ka sa social media, ingana ba. (Rica) [Go outside a little. Don’t always be on your laptop or mobile phone. Don’t always be on social media.]

Lesson learned, dapat i-engage imong self sa gawas gane, sa real world kay para happy-happy. (Precilla) [Lesson learned, you must engage yourself outside, in the real world so that you will be happy.] Lastly, another way to prevent Social Media Depression is knowing one’s self. There is no need to compare one’s self to another. A person should not take any negative comments on social media seriously and should avoid being affected by everything that is posted on any platform. You know your worth so dili ka magpa-apekto sa unsa imong makit-an sa social media. (Rica) [You know your worth so you should avoid being affected by what you see in social media.] 109

Matrix 14.Ways Social Media Depression Can Be Prevented Without Social Media

With Social Media

Key informant

Depression

Psychologists

•

Limit the use of

•

Having self-control

social media. (2 out

over the use of social

of 9)

media. (4 out of 5)

Limit your exposure to the

People with depressive

social media para ma

tendencies need to lessen

define nimo ang

their social media usage for

comparison between you

their own good. Filtering

and the other alternate

what they see in their

world na na sa

timelines also help. Personal

Facebook.(Paulo)

responsibility is the key, in

[Limit your exposure to the social media so that you can define the comparison between you and the other alternate world in Facebook.]

•

Limit or stop use (2 out of 2)

Shut it (gadget) off! (Dr. Peachy)

my opinion. (Informant B) (Informant C) By learning self-control regarding what you post about as well as constantly reminding ourselves that social media is not an accurate

•

Being responsible online is key to

representation of a person's real life.

prevention. (3 out of 9)

110

Mo discipline ka sa imong self ba nga hinay-hinayan nimo. Kuan man na, depende man nasa imong pag-gamit diba? Kung mayo imong pag-gamit, so syempre naa siyay positive effects pero if sobra-sobra na sad, kahibaw jud ka na dili siya sakto. (Joelie) [You should discipline yourself and slow down. It all depends on your usage, right? If you use (social media) in a good way, it will give you positive effects but if you’re using it way too much, you would know that it’s not right.]

•

Become more sociable outside social media. (3 out of 9)

111

I think makatabang sad ang kana ganing mas imo pang i-strengthen ang imong being social, kanang interaction jud ba, personal interaction instead of imong tagaan og focus ang virtual interaction. (Joelie) [I think it also helps when you strengthen your being social, your personal interaction with people instead of focusing on virtual interaction]

a. Raise awareness What better way to prevent Social Media Depression than to be aware of it and its negative effects? One out nine FGD participants and one out of five informants with Social Media Depression believed that spreading the word about Social Media Depression helps in combating this phenomenon. Social media can be very beneficial if it is used in right and good ways. It should not be labelled as something evil because it is present to also help people in their everyday lives. However, there have been numerous cases in misuse that puts social media in bad light and had harmful effects on the users. This can be avoided through

112

educating the users in the proper use of social media. A person prone to depressive symptoms should not be alone in fighting it. Parents and teachers can help by guiding them in using media in the most responsible way to make it more efficient and sustainable. Social media should be a tool to help achieve progress and peace. (Informant E, this informant preferred to be anonymous).

Matrix 15.Raising Awareness on Social Media Depression FGD Participants â&#x20AC;˘

Spreading awareness about this issue and its

With Social Media Depression â&#x20AC;˘

Educating people about this phenomenon can be the solution. (2 out of 5)

consequences can be effective preventive

I think there isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t enough people who are aware of

measures. (4 out of 9)

this phenomenon. It would help if this issue is raised and taught to children and teenagers because they

Siguro kanang i-spread ang mga

are the ones most prone to this. (Informant E)

lectures something na kung ngani kay naay consequences sa inyong gipangbuhat. (Jill) [Spread lectures about the consequences on using social media.]

113

E. Data Discussion

1. In Relation to the Framework of the Study This thesis is anchored on Uses and Gratifications Theory, Dependency Theory, and Social Information Processing Theory. It is of the Cybernetic tradition for studying the mechanics of social media, and Sociopsychological tradition for learning about its cause and effects in relation to Social Media Depression. One of the principles of the Uses and Gratifications Theory is that the audience are active in choosing to consume particular media. This is evident on the answers of the respondents as they have varying preferences for social media platforms to use, what time they choose to consume it, what types of gadgets, etc. The researchers have learned that the Filipino youthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s favourite social media site is Facebook with 100% of the respondents having owned an account in the platform (see Figure 8). Sixteen (16%)of them agreed to using Facebook for more than 6 hours daily (see Table 4). Seventy-eight (78%) of them access their accounts in the PMs (see Figure 9). Almost all of them (93%) preferred type of access is their smartphones (see Figure 10). Fifty-nine (59%) are active users or regularly interacts with other users of the platform (see Figure 11). This in turn can be related to the motivations of use which is another concept of Uses and Gratifications Theory. Almost all (94%) of the respondentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; motivation for social media use is to keep in touch with friends (see Figure 12). Facebook is the preferred platform among the Filipino youth, because it is famous among the friends they want to get in touch with. For the same reason that they access it usually in the PM because it is the time when most of their friends are online. They generally use cellphones because it is faster and easier to interact in something you can hold within

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your palms. More than half are active users because their main purpose for using social media is to keep in touch. Another concept of Uses and Gratifications theory is that despite the same motivation and consumption pattern, a media can have different effects on different individuals. This in turn is the reason why some of the respondents and informants can get depressed from social media use, and why others donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get affected much. Despite two respondents generally having the same answers in the social media consumption and motivation part, one agrees on getting depressed with social media use and the other disagrees. Dependency Theory discusses that when a person gets too attached with a particular media it can affect a lot of aspects in that personâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s life. This is evident in the statements that were said by the informants and respondents. Social media can evoke a lot of emotions: sadness, joy, anger, and it can also evoke a more permanent or recurring feeling which is depression. It has been proven through the interviews of the individuals who claimed to get depressed over social media that indeed the phenomenon of Social Media Depression is real. The third framework Social Information Processing Theory (SIP) explains more on the technical aspects of media. The concept of extended time that is being presented in the theory is debunked. The slow interaction that happens over social media does not improve relationships, but rather has the tendency to destroy it. It can be seen on Section 3, under the third subheading: Seen or ignored message/s) how the respondents and informants feel hurt over their seen or ignored messages. Computermediated interaction which prevents a user from having the same interaction that happens face-to-face is the reason for the factors mentioned in this thesis like envy, negative content, technical aspects, cyberbullying, etc.

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This study also proves the opposite on the concept of verbal cues of affinity or the ability of the text alone to replace nonverbal cues that happen in online interaction. One of the victims of cyberbullying stated how it mainly happened because of misunderstanding. There was “high propensity to misunderstand” and “miscommunication” happens. These were from the statement of Anon 1. However, it must be taken into consideration that SIP Theory was developed in 1992 prior to the social media age. Joseph Walther and other related theorists conceptualized SIP with email communication in mind. This goes to show how technology goes hand -in -hand with communication, and studies on the recent trends should always be conducted to keep up on its ever-changing impact to the people around the world.

2. In Relation to Related Studies The data gathered from the survey, FGD, interviews and key informant interviews are consistent with the related literature that were discussed in Chapter 2. The most used social media is Facebook. This is according to Tandoc, Ferucci, Duffy’s (2015) study. All of the survey respondents use Facebook and allots the most time to it with 16 of them using the platform for more than 6 hours a day. Facebook is also frequently mentioned by the FGD participants. Even though some of them do not regularly post updates on Facebook, most of them use it for school purposes as they have school groups formed there. On the topic of social media use, Bolton, et al (2013) examines the motivations of the Generation Y in using social media. Bolton et al mentioned a variety of usage of social media including contributing, consuming, sharing, searching for content, etc. The Gen Y’s main purpose for social media is connection.

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In the survey, the top three reasons why the youth use social media is to keep in touch with friends, keep in touch with family members and the last is to make new friends, all of which have to do with connection. Also according to Basilisco and Cha (2015) who examined the motivations of Filipinos in using Facebook, Filipinos use Facebook mainly to keep in touch with their family, loved ones and friends. Most, if not all youth, are addicted to social media. Abdulahi, Samadi and Gharleghi (2014) introduced the term “problematic Internet use” which is also referred to as Internet addiction. Being addicted to the Internet increases the risk of facing the negative side of social media and developing Social Media Depression. One of the informants said, “Social media is addictive. If that’s the case, then people might develop an unhealthy addiction to it which may indirectly lead to said psychological effects.” One of the most prevalent factors of Social Media Depression is envy. According to Krasnova, Wenninger, Widjaja and Buxmann (2013), Facebook is responsible for causing envy-inducing incidents. Almost all of the respondents opined that envy is a major factor in Social Media Depression. It is either that they themselves had been envious of other people on social media or observed other people experiencing the same. Envy occurs when the user sees other people online and thinks that they have better lives than them. According to Leon Festinger (as cited by Steers, Wickham and Acitelli, 2014), “individuals have an innate desire to socially compare themselves to others as a way to evaluate their own opinions and abilities and that people usually selectively choose whom to compare themselves to on the basis of perceived similarity.” (page 703). This is a trend recognizable in the answers we got from the respondents. One of them said, “Seeing other people doing good in life. I start to envy them and their

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achievements. Also, social media tends to have its own norms that you feel the need to comply to it and if you can’t you feel frustrated.” Envy is intensified as people develop narcissistic tendencies in social media according to Appel, Crusius and Gerlach (2015). They are likely to post only the good things in their life. One of the participants said, “Feel nakokitangtanan kay naa’y tendency ngamasmoprefer ta nga mag-present saatong selves in a better way, a positive way, salaingtao. Mao ng most of the time saubangtao, ilangipang-post nailangsa social media is kanangmga happy experiences.” [I feel that we all have a tendency to prefer to present ourselves in a better way, a positive way, to other people. Most of the time, people post happy experiences.” Another factor for Social Media Depression to occur is cyberbullying. In the case of Ask.fm, according to Han, Liv, Ghasemianlangroodi and Mishra (2014), there has been incidentsof cyberbullying which have led to suicidal tendencies among its users. In the survey, 34.3% of the respondents felt hurt when asked negative questions asked on Ask.fm (see Chapter 5, section B). Some of the respondents had experienced cyberbullying firsthand or know someone who was bullied online. The key informants explained that cyberbullying is a major factor that can contribute to depression because in social media, anyone can do whatever they want to do and say whatever they want to say regardless of the feelings of others. With all of these factors, social media has earned itself a bad reputation but it’s the misuse of it that gets people into trouble. However, if it will be used in a proper and healthy way, the risk of being depressed in social media will be reduced. According to O’Keeffe, Clarke-Pearson and Council on Communications and Media (2011), social media can help an individual express oneself and develop unique social skills. It can also be used to encourage the youth to do things extending to the community and the

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world since social media has a global reach. To ensure that negative behaviors will be avoided, guidance must be given to the users especially at a young age, to become responsible and use social media for good ways. As what Informant E said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Social media should be a tool to help achieve progress and peace.â&#x20AC;?

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CHAPTER VI SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

This chapter summarizes the findings of the study for each of the specific objectives: (1) To determine social media consumption patterns of selected Filipino youth; (2) To find out the informantsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; views on social media use as a source of depression; (3) To identify the factors that make social media depressing to some youth users, and; (4) To determine the negative effects of social media on a userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mentality contributing to depression. In the first objective, the researchers found out that the Filipino youth have varying social media habits, but some trends can also be observed in their consumption. Through the second objective, it is evident that the informants are aware of Social Media Depression based on their observations or their own experience. In the third objective, five factors that cause Social Media Depression were discussed: (1) Envy, (2) Number of likes, comments, followers, etc, (3) Seen or ignored message/s, (4) Negative content, and (5) Inner psycho-emotional conditions. In the fourth objective, five factors that indirectly cause Social Media Depression were discussed: (1) Addiction and dependency, (2) Feelings of isolation and lack of interaction, (3) Developing high expectations, (4) Cyberbullying, and (5) Technical factors. After gathering and analyzing data from various Filipino youth who use social media, it is evident that the platform can indeed contribute to depression to some of its users. Social Media Depression is a real phenomenon. A personâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s disposition and the way he/she uses social media are the main factors that will determine their vulnerability to depression when using social media.

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A. Summary of Findings

1. Social Media Consumption Patterns among Selected Filipino Youth To study the consumption patterns of the Filipino Youth, Uses and Gratifications Theory had been used. According to the results, Facebook is the most used social media among the respondents, and they spend the most time on it more than any other social media. Previous related studies have mentioned this. More than half of the users prefer to use social media in the PMâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s rather than in the AMâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s. Through cellphone is the most preferred type of access when using social media. Active using or interacting with other users by liking, commenting, sharing, posting, etc is the most common type of use. On the motivations of use, the following were the top three results: (1) to keep in touch with friends; (2) to be updated with events; and, (3) to keep in touch with family members. This coincides with the findings of a related study by Basilisco and Cha (2015) which studied the reasons why Filipinos use social media, Facebook specifically. The main reason why they do so is to keep in touch with loved one, friends and family. One of the main elements of the Uses and Gratifications Theory is that the audience is perceived as active. Based on this, it can be gathered that the respondents were actively deciding to use social media and it what ways to use the platform. However, through comparisons, the researchers determined that individuals with Social Media Depression and individuals without Social Media Depression donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have any specific difference in their consumption trends and motivations of use. Therefore, Social Media Depression is attributed to another element of the Uses and Gratifications Theory that media can have varying effects on different individuals.

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2. Views on Social Media Use as a Source of Depression This objective uses the Dependency Theory as the framework. A Likert scale was used to measure the attitude score of the respondents towards Social Media Depression based on the statements relating to Social Media Depression. Overall there were five disagreements, and one neutral attitude on the statements that were presented. The statements that the respondents disagreed on were about depression, jealousy, feelings of neglect and comparison which are sensitive topics that the respondents might not be too open with revealing. According to one related study by Krasnova et al. (2013), “the seeming unimportance of envy revealed in this analysis may be rooted in respondents’ reluctance to directly admit to experiencing envy, rather reporting such general outcomes as feelings of anger, exhaustion, frustration, and irritation. Admitting to these feelings is more socially acceptable, since they can be equally caused by information overload or social conflict, which carry less social stigma.” The neutrality on the statement related to cyberbullying on the other hand may be due to the fact that it is an existing issue which has already been tackled a lot of times which is why the respondents are more open about it. Dependency Theory reiterates that the media has the ability to influence three different areas of an individual’s character, the cognitive, behavioral and affective. In the affective area, a lot of emotions can be evoked by a medium like sadness in social media which can lead to depression in the long run. The individuals with Social Media Depression affirmed that Social Media Depression does exist through their own experiences. Even those without Social Media Depression agreed that the phenomenon is real based on what they can observe from their friends and acquaintances.

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3. Factors that Make Social Media Depressing to Some Youth Users In this objective Social Information Processing Theory was used as the foundation. Five factors that cause Social Media Depression were discussed: (1) Envy, (2) Number of likes, comments, followers, etc, (3) Seen or ignored message/s, (4) Negative content, and (5) Inner psycho-emotional conditions. Envy is the factor which most of the informants pointed out as the most likely cause of Social Media Depression. The interaction that happens in parks before now takes place in the virtual world and amplifies it many times which triggers comparisons and envy in turn. In a study by Appel et al (2015), the term â&#x20AC;&#x153;Facebook envyâ&#x20AC;? was used to describe the feeling of being in social media and seeing the flawless lives of others which encourages the user to feel envious. Social Presence Theory which explains that CMC deprives users of the feeling that another real person is involved in the interaction, Media Richness Theory which suggests that CMC bandwidth for information is too narrow to be able to convey rich relational messages, and the lack of nonverbal cues which is necessary to develop relationships are the three arguments that counter SIP Theory. These theories are congruent with the factors (1) seen/ignored message/s and (2) negative content. Social media is a lean medium because it usually lacks contextualization which can cause some negativity to its users. To sum up the results of this objective, individuals with Social Media Depression are mostly dealing with depression in real life, but individuals who have depression in real life do not necessarily have to get depressed online; their virtual lives can be their escape. In conclusion, Social Media Depression can affect anyone at all, but mostly those who have depressive tendencies.

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4. Negative Effects of Social Media on a User’s Mentality Contributing to Depression The theory of Internet Dependency is tied up in this objective to identify how the misuse of social media can have negative consequences on an individual’s psychological well-being. From a previous related study by O’Keeffe, et al (2011), they claimthat while social media can be very useful and important to the lives of the users, it is not an entirely positive environment. Using social media can often influence the user to do negative behaviors such as harassing other people, cyberbullying, sexting and violation of privacy. From the FDG, focused interview and key informant interview, there were five negative effects of social media that stood out. The first one is addiction and dependency. The youth today are undeniably fascinated with social media. It serves as an escape route from all of their problems where they can do anything and everything. That is why it is so addicting. Being addicted to it however can cause the user to ignore more important activities, give up on sleep, and lessen physical connection. In one of the related studies, internet addiction was mentioned. It was likely prevalent among the youth because they have the highest rate of exposure and frequency of use of social media. In a study by Abdulahi, et al (2014) the term “problematic internet use” was introduced and it is also known as “internet addiction” which affects how the users do their everyday activities. Second is having feelings of isolation and lack of interaction. When the user becomes too engrossed with using social media sites, physical interaction with other people suffer. Broken ties can also happen online because there is an option to unfriend or block a person. A few of the respondents have experienced being unfriended by a friend and they were hurt by it. Ignored messages also cause emotional distress. When

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a person feels isolated from everybody else, his/her only option might be to turn to social media. Third is developing high expectations and failing to achieve them. In social media, there are many standards to be met. There are a lot of conformities to follow. Having a large number of likes, follows and positive comments can become a very big deal. Every time the user would log on to his/her account/s, there is an expectation of having all these. However, this might not happen all the time and can become a reason for having a low self-esteem and lack of confidence. Fourth is cyberbullying. It has always been a problem. Now, it has become more complicated with the rise of social media. It is easier to bully someone nowadays because a person can choose to go anonymous online and get away with hurting other people. There is no responsibility to say sorry to the victim or to stop the bullying. A few of the respondents have experienced being bullied. Although it did not affect them thoroughly, it was still a bad thing to go through. In Ask.fm, there were incidents of cyberbullying that led to suicide, according to one of the related studies. Lastly, there are technical factors that make social media depressing to the users. The key informants have explained that staring at the screen of gadgets, especially at night, causes the user to not feel sleepiness. This can result to high stress levels and can lead to tiredness, sickness and being depressed. With all of these negative effects of social media, it is likely for the user to become depressed. Fortunately, it can be avoided. The best way to do it, as suggested by the respondents, is to limit use and exposure to social media. Also, learning how to use it for good reasons will make social media consumption productive, safe and depression-free.

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B. Conclusion To answer the main question which is: Does social media use contribute to

the depression of its primary users, the youth who are also the age group most prone to depression? Social media use is not the main contributor to a person having depression. However, there are several factors bridging social media use and depression. These factors are either direct or indirect factors that cause the users to feel negative emotions when using social media which can possibly lead to depression. While is it true that social media has its benefits, it still seems to be causing depressive emotions among some people. Envy is the factor that most informants pointed out as the reason. People post the highlights of their lives online and the audience feels the pressure to be at par. Conformity to certain standards is important in social media; failing to do so results to depressive tendencies. People want approval of others by gaining a huge numbers of likes, follows and comments. Sadly, this does not happen all the time. Once again, the likelihood of developing depression becomes high. Other factors include seen or ignored messages, causing the user to feel sad and neglected. Negative content, such as bad news and senseless posts, also affects the users. Also, social media has negative effects to a userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mentality which leads to depression. Such effects include addiction and dependency; isolation and lack of interaction; failing to reach high expectations, cyberbullying and even technical factors such as the light from the screen. All these factors indirectly have negative effects to social media users. Based on the informantsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; opinions, Social Media Depression is indeed real and present in the society, but people who are experiencing it tend to hide it because of the reasons that they pointed out. The three main points were that humans always choose

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to present themselves in a positive light; the Filipino culture promotes happiness and banishes those who are sad; and people want to conform to what they â&#x20AC;&#x153;thinkâ&#x20AC;? the majority feels. This in itself is ironic because what if the majority feels depressed, but tend to hide it due to this so-called conformity. The issue of Social Media Depression turns into a conundrum as everyone who has it tends to hide it, and a problem can never be fixed unless itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s being put out in the open. This tendency to deny having Social Media Depression is evident on the five informants with Social Media Depression who requested that they be anonymous in this thesis; the two anonymous respondents who answered the survey and did not leave contact details; and the one respondent who was not open to discussing the issue. According to their BDI scores, six out of the eight respondents who claim to have Social Media Depression have mild mood disturbance, borderline clinical depression and moderate depression, the other two were normal (see Table 8). Other respondents with higher BDI scores did not strongly agree or agree with the statement that they feel depressed using their social media/s. What can be gathered from this is that individuals who claimed to have Social Media Depression are mostly dealing with depression in real life, but individuals who have depression in real life do not necessarily have to get depressed online; their virtual lives can be their escape. In conclusion, Social Media Depression can affect anyone at all, but mostly those who have depressive tendencies. What the key informants suggest to lessen the depressive tendencies of social media is to be responsible and aware users of social media. Responsible in limiting use when its negative aspects start to outweigh its positive side, and aware that not everything that happens in the virtual world corresponds with the real world. If social media is no longer a healthy place for you, quit it for some time, or quit it for good.

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CHAPTER VII IMPLICATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Theoretical Issues

The results of this research generally correspond with the theories being used as framework, although there are some elements that it invalidates in the Social Processing Theory (SIP). The findings of the study echo the principles of the Uses and Gratifications Theory, DependencyTheoryandSocial Information Processing Theory. Through these theories, the researchers were able to affirm that the phenomenon of Social Media Depression really exists. In the Uses and Gratifications Theory, the concepts were present in the survey that was conducted. According to the results the assumptions of the theory are found to be true when applied to the Filipino Youth who use social media. Respondents have their own differing consumption patterns, motivations of use, and social media accounts can be seen to have different effects on the different individuals as can be seen on the respondents without Social Media Depression and respondents with Social Media Depression. Dependency Theory affirms what the psychologists were saying, that sometimes it is not the media per se, but how the person uses the media and his/her own preexisting conditions. Misuse can lead to negative consequences; an individual who gets depressed from using social media is no different from the children who tend to get violent when playing video games. Social media merely aggravates the situation of depression. Those who have depressive tendencies in real life are those most likely to get depressed in the virtual world. But, there are also some individuals who are happy in

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real life, but tend to have a sad virtual existence; this is explained further through the application of the next theory. Social Information Processing Theory which explains that computer-mediatedcommunication can vary greatly from interpersonal communication that happens in real life is the main reason why even people who generally have happy dispositions tend to be the opposite online. The three counterarguments of the theory, Social Presence Theory, Media Richness and the lack of nonverbal cues affirm the factors that were found to be the causes of depression in social media especially (1) seen/ignored message/s and (2) negative content. These theories prove that social media is a lean medium which can have various negative consequences. In defense, SIP theory uses the concept of verbal cues of affinity or the ability of CMC content to replace nonverbal cues. However, this does not coincide with what some of the informants were saying, that content in social media con sometimes evoke negative emotions in them and also seen or ignored messages which takes place in social media platforms. The three theories were very useful in achieving the objectives of this study. However, for future studies on this topic, it would be best to use another theory other than SIP. The results affirmed the concept of SIP that CMC content is really different from communication in real life, but it is opposite from its other concept which reiterates that there are elements in CMC enough to replace physical interaction. Nevertheless, the counterarguments supplied for what it lacked. The researchers also suggest for a reformulation of the Media Richness Theory or the Social Presence Theory. Social media would be classified as a lean medium because its options for communication often lack contextualization except for its videoconferencing option which is seldom used and not always available in different platforms.

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The researchers also suggest the creation of a theory that will focus on social media alone. A lot of new and complex communication processes happen in social media, and a theory is yet to be developed to concretize what has earlier been found by previous studies including this thesis. There are theories that highlight social media, but there is none which features social media alone. Social media is an interesting topic, and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m sure plenty of studies will still be conducted about it for the years to come. As experienced by the researchers of this study, it was hard finding theories relatable to social media as technology and communication related theories are mostly old and explains concepts on outdated communication technology such as emails. A theory will make the work of future researchers easier.

B. Methodological Issues For the data gathering, three methods were used which were the Focus Group Discussion, focused interview and key informant interview. For the survey, the 100 respondents were chosen through purposive sampling. The researchers invited the respondents, who were Filipinos aged 15-30 years old through Facebook and sent the survey through a personal message. However, there were some parts of the country that were not reached as the respondents were mostly from the Visayas region. The researchers recommend that future researchers would try to reach out to more regions to have more diverse responses since each regions have unique ways of using social media. For the Focus Interview, having the respondents interviewed online or through text messaging was effective as they were truthful in their answers that social media did affect them negatively. It is better to do this way for them to avoid feeling being ostracized and be freer with their answers. The downside to this is that other

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respondents have really short answers, although concise ones, especially the ones who were interviewed through text messaging. The researchers advise future researchers to choose online communication over the use of mobile phones. Email is probably the best option. For the key informant interview, both psychologists were still new to the concept of Social Media Depression. The researchers suggest that future studies should consult younger psychologists or those who have deep understanding of social media. Younger psychologists also can relate better to the primary users of social media, which is the youth. Also, the two psychologists that were interviewed asked if the context of depression used in this study was clinical depression, which is more severe. For this study the researchers used depression in its general sense. For future studies, it is recommended that the researchers put a clear definition on which they wish to focus on. The researchers also recommend the use of higher statistics or the use of statistical tests in inferential statistics for future research on this topic. This thesis only employed descriptive statistics consisting of frequencies, percentages, and mean scores.

C. Practical Issues This study was able to prove that social media can indeed contribute to depression on some Filipino Youth. The survey that was conducted was able to determine and affirm some basic information about social media and depression. Through the answers of the individuals with Social Media Depression, the researchers were able to understand the struggles of those who have first-hand experience with the phenomenon. Through a discussion with the informants without Social Media Depression, the perception of the general population was realized. With the expert

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opinions from the key informant psychologists, the researchers were able to probe deeper into the concepts of this study. Combining all the data that was gathered, it can be concluded that Social Media Depression is real, and an awareness regarding the phenomenon needs to be raised. Moreover, according to what the informants suggested, if an individual is suffering from Social Media Depression he/she should limit his/her use. It would be better to just shut off the gadget or deactivate the account. Social media has a lot of good in it, but if itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s starting to get bad for a person thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s no reason why anyone shouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t take a break away from it. The researchers took on this study after coming across various articles that report about the existence of Social Media Depression or statistics that show how people tend to feel bad when using social media. However, those articles were written about and for the foreign audience. Upon further research of related literature, there were various existing studies about the topic, but none conducted in the Philippine setting. Thus, these circumstances solidified the decision to study this topic. Social media is a big thing in the Philippines, and knowing its consequences, both the good and the bad, can really help a lot in improving user experience. Through the creative output which is a 2-minute animated video, the researchers aim to raise awareness on the issue of Social Media Depression. Social media users especially youth want visual information, and by providing facts in animated form, more audience are more likely to view and absorb the results of the research. The majority can benefit from this research, the youth, parents, social media users and psychologists. The researchers encourage future researchers to probe more on the topic of Social Media Depression. What was discovered in this thesis is only the tip of the iceberg of social media and its consequences. Furthermore, it would be

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useful for future researchers to study the effectiveness of the animated video produced from this thesis. Depression is a growing problem in the Philippines with a reported increase of suicide incidence in the country. Depression is a complex medical condition, and people who have it are very sensitive with the environment around them. It has already been proven in this study that social media can really contribute to depression. This calls upon the need for all social media users to be aware and to be responsible netizens because today the virtual world can be as real as the real world.

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APPENDIX A Survey Questionnaire

Social Media's Contribution to Depression among Selected Filipino Youth We are 4th year Mass Communication students of the University of the Philippines Cebu. We are conducting a study about social media depression focusing on the Filipino youth for our Thesis. If you are a Filipino, 15-30 years old, and a social media user, please proceed. We are hoping for your honest response in this survey which is necessary for the completion of our study. Everything you put in here will be kept confidential. * Required I. Demographics Name (Optional) Age * Gender * Course and Year/ Grade/ Occupation * Contact Number * Address * Email Address Please check all that applies. II. Social Media Consumption Please check all that applies. 1. What social media do you use? Please check all that applies. * _____ Facebook _____ Twitter _____ Google+ _____ Pinterest _____ Instagram _____ Ask.fm _____ Snapchat _____ Tumblr _____ Youtube _____ 9Gag _____ Other/s:

2. How often do you use social media in a day? 0-1 hour 1-2 hours 2-4 hours

5. 6.

4-6 hours

More than 6 hours

Facebook Twitter Google+ Pinterest Instagram Ask.fm Snapchat Tumblr Youtube 9gag Other/s Why do you use social media? ____ To keep in touch with friends. ____ To keep in touch with family members. ____ To make new friends. ____ To do business-related activities. ____ To get opinions. ____ To post updates. ____ To be updated with the events. ____ For school matters. ____ To play games. ____ To check on pictures and videos. ____ To seek information about others. ____ So that I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get left behind by my peers. ____ It is readily available. ____ Other/s: __________________________________ How do you access your social media account/s? * ____ Desktop ____ Laptop/ Notebook ____ Tablet ____ Cellphone ____ Other/s: _________________________________ What time do you usually use your social media account/s? Please specify the time, you can list down more than one time (e.g. 8AM9AM/ 4PM5PM): What type of social media user are you? * Check all that applies. ____ Active (Regularly interacts with other users, commenting, posting, liking, etc.) ____ Passive (Just browses through content.) ____ Other/s:

III. Views & perceptions on social media Please check the most suitable answer.Please check the most suitable answer. Mark only one oval per row.

Strongly Agree

Agree

Neutral

Disagree

Strongly Disagree

You feel depressed when you use your social media account/s. Surfing your newsfeed on your social media account/s makes you feel unhappy. Looking at happy social media posts make you feel sad about your life. You feel sad comparing yourself to the achievements that your friends post on their social media. You feel sad when you get small likes, comments or shares from your posts. You feel sad reading negative comments directed at you. IV. Negative feelings associated with social media use Look at the screen captures, and answer the questions that follow.

1. Which among the screen captures caused you to feel sad? Imagine you were the owner of the social media account. Check all that apply. ___ Seen message on Facebook.

___ No likes and comments on Facebook. ___ Negative questions on Ask.fm. ___ Comments, likes and follows on Instagram. 2. Why did the item/s you checked make you feel sad? 3. If you checked none, what situations in social media cause you to feel sad? V. Beck's Depression Inventory This questionnaire consists of 21 groups of statements. Please read each group statements carefully and the pick out the one statement in each group that best describes the way you have been feeling during the past two weeks, including today. Circle the number beside the statement you have picked. If several statements in the group seem to apply equally well, circle the highest number for that group. Be sure that you do not choose more than one statement for any group, including Item 16 (Changes in Sleeping Pattern) or Item 18 (Changes in Appetite). 1. Sadness 0 I do not feel sad. 1 I feel sad much of the time. 2 I am sad all the time. 3 I am so sad or unhappy that I can’t stand it. 2. Pessimism 0 I am not discouraged about my future. 1 I feel more discouraged about my future than I used to be. 2 I do not expect things to work out for me. 3 I feel my future is hopeless and will only get worse. 3. Past Failure 0 I do not feel like a failure. 1 I have failed more than I should have. 2 As I look back, I see a lot of failures. 3 I feel I am a total failure as a person. 4. Loss of Pleasure 0 I get as much pleasure as I ever did from the things I enjoy. 1 I don’t enjoy things as much as I used to. 2 I get very little pleasure from the things I used to enjoy. 3 I can’t get any pleasure from the things I used to enjoy. 5. Guilty Feelings 0 I don’t feel particularly guilty. 1 I feel guilty over many things I have done or should have done. 2 I feel quite guilty all the time. 3 I feel guilty all the time. 6. Punishment Feelings 0 I don’t feel I am being punished. 1 I feel I may be punished. 2 I expect to be punished. 3 I feel I am being punished. 7. Self-Dislike 0 I feel the same about myself as ever. 1 I have lost confidence in myself. 2 I am disappointed in myself.

3 I dislike myself. 8. Self-Criticalness 0 I don’t criticize or blame myself more than usual. 1 I am more critical of myself than I used to be. 2 I criticize myself for all my faults. 3 I blame myself for everything bad that happens. 9. Suicidal Thoughts or Wishes 0 I don’t have any thought of killing myself. 1 I have thoughts of killing myself, but I would not carry them out. 2 I would like to kill myself. 3 I would kill myself if I had the chance. 10. Crying 0 I don’t cry anymore than I used to. 1 I cry more than I used to. 2 I cry over every little thing. 3 I feel like crying but I can’t. 11. Agitation 0 I am no more restless or wound up as usual. 1 I feel more restless or wound up than usual. 2 I am so restless or agitated that it’s hard to stay still. 3 I am so restless or agitated that I have to keep moving or doing something. 12. Loss of Interest 0 I have lost interest in other people or activities. 1 I am less interested in other people or things than before. 2 I have lost most of my interest in other people or things. 3 It’s hard to get interested in anything. 13. Indecisiveness 0 I make decisions about as well as ever. 1 I find it more difficult to make decisions than usual. 2 I have much greater difficulty in making decisions that I used to. 3 I have trouble making any decisions. 14. Worthlessness 0 I do not feel I am worthless. 1 I don’t consider myself as worthwhile and useful as I used to. 2 I feel more worthless as compared to other people. 3 I feel utterly useless. 15. Loss of Energy 0 I have as much energy as ever. 1 I have less energy than I used to have. 2 I don’t have enough energy to do very much. 3 I don’t have enough energy to do anything. 16. Changes in Sleeping Pattern 0 I have not experienced any change in my sleeping pattern. 1 1a I sleep somewhat more than usual. 1b I sleep somewhat less than usual. 2a I sleep a lot more than usual. 2b I sleep a lot less than usual. 3a I sleep most of the day. 3b I wake up 1-2 hours and can’t go back to sleep. 17. Irritability 0 I am no more irritable than usual.

1 I am more irritable than usual. 2 I am much more irritable than usual. 3 I am irritable all the time. 18. Changes in Appetite 0 I have not experienced any change in my appetite. 1a My appetite is somewhat less than usual. 1b My appetite is somewhat greater than usual. 2a My appetite is much less than before. 2b My appetite is much greater than usual. 3a I have no appetite at all. 19. Concentration Difficulty 0 I can concentrate as well as ever. 1 I canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t concentrate as well as usual. 2 Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hard to keep my mind on anything for very long. 3 I canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t find concentrate on anything. 20. Tiredness or Fatigue 0 I am no more tired or fatigued than usual. 1 I get more easily tired or fatigued more easily than usual. 2 I am too tired or fatigued to do a lot of the things I used to do. 3 I am too tired or fatigued to do most of the things I used to do. 21. Loss of Interest in Sex 0 I have not noticed any recent change in my interest in sex. 1 I am less interested in sex than I used to be. 2 I am much less interested in sex now. 3 I have lost interest in sex completely. Thank you and God bless!

APPENDIX B FGD/FI Guide Questions

1. Are you aware of social media depression? 2. Have you experienced social media depression? If yes, can you tell us what happened? 3. Do you think that the rise in the statistics of depressed youth is caused by the increased popularity of social media use? Why or why not? 4. Do you think social media is causing depression among its Youth users? 5. If yes, what do you think are the factors in social media sites that cause depression among its users? 6. Why do you think social media is depressing to some, yet a happy environment for others? 7. In what ways can the depressive consequences of social media use be prevented? 8. Have you been subjected to cyber bullying? -

If yes, how did it make you feel? If they were to say in real life what they told you online, would you have felt the same?

9. Do you think social media has negative psychological effects? -

If yes, as a social media user, what negative psychological effects have you

Do these negative psychological effects cause you to feel depressed?

experienced?

If no, how do you avoid harbouring negative feelings in the social media?

10. Do you think social media can cause depression? If yes, why do you think so?

APPENDIX C Key Informant Guide Questions

1. Why do you think the youth is fond of using social media? 2. Do you think social media depression is a real medical condition? 3. Does social media cause depression or does social media merely aggravate or trigger existing inner psycho-emotional conditions? 4. What do you think are the psychological factors that make social media depressing to its users? -

Lack of sleep contributing to negative mentality.

Promotion of depression on suicidal sites

Platform for comparison with others

Cyber bullying

5. What ways can social media users avoid feeling depressed when using the platform? 6. Present video on natural observation, and interview about it.

APPENDIX D Beckâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Depression Inventory Scoring Instructions

INTERPRETING THE BECK DEPRESSION INVENTORY (BDI-II) Add up the score for each of the 21 questions by counting the number to the right of each question you marked. The highest possible total for the whole test would be sixtythree and the lowest possible score for the test would be zero. This would mean you circles zero on each question. You can evaluate your depression according to the Table below. Total Score Levels of Depression 0-10 = These ups and downs are considered normal 11-16 = Mild mood disturbance 17-20 = Borderline clinical depression 21-30 = Moderate depression 31-40 = Severe depression over 40 = Extreme depression A PERSISTENT SCORE OF 17 OR ABOVE INDICATES THAT YOU MAY NEED TREATMENT.

APPENDIX E FGD Informants Consent Form

May 12, 2016

To whom it may concern, Good day! We are Julie Marie Bedas and Junmari Chevyn Hencianos, both fourth year Mass Communication students from UP Cebu. Our thesis is titled “Social Media’s Contribution to Depression among College Students in the Philippine Setting”. We will be exploring the factors that cause social media depression focusing on Filipino college students, and we will be providing recommendations for positive social media use. You have participated in our focus group discussion and gave insightful answers and quotes which will be written in our thesis. With this, we ask your permission for us to publish your real names to make our data more credible. We do respect your privacy and we will not publish your real names if you do not want to, you will remain anonymous. However, if you would allow us to publish your real names, please place your signature above your name below. We thank you very much for your cooperation. God speed!

Sincerely yours, Junmari Chevyn Hencianos and Julie Marie Bedas

I give you my permission to publish my real name in your thesis:

Jill Lapiceros

Donna Mae Ocmeja

Joelieann Pada

Paulo Salada

Rica Isabel Dupal

Hyacinth Blaise Tan

Angelito Ortiz

Jay Juvah Estole

Precilla Ibanez

APPENDIX F Video Output Script

Visual The numbers will be

Text 40% of the whole population in the world today has internet access

bigger than the other texts The numbers will be

30% of the population already have accounts on different social media

bigger than the other

sites

texts 4 outlines of people

3 out of 4 people who use the internet also use social media

and 3 of them will be shaded to highlight

social media penetration in the Philippines is up to 32% - 40%

the ratio. Show graph of mbps

Despite the terrible 2.5 mbps average internet speed in the country, one

usage around the

of the bottom three in the world

world, maybe only a few countries or just Asia Clock with its hands

6.3 hours in the internet and 4.3 hours in social media

spinning Border below: Outline

Top five reasons in using social media:

of people holding up

To keep in touch with friends

gadgets

To be updated with the events.

To keep in touch with family members

Text

To check pictures and videos.

To post updates.

Philippines is one of the top five countries with a rising suicide rate â&#x20AC;&#x201C; WHO

Background: Outline

"Social media depression" is a term used to informally describe the

of people and others

depressive thoughts associated with using social media

become faded to signify depression. The text will be on the foreground with â&#x20AC;&#x153;social media depressionâ&#x20AC;? larger than the rest of the text. The numbers will be

9 out of 100 Filipino youth aged 15-30 years old have social media

bigger than the other

depression

texts. Still the same background. An outline of a girl

Envy is the factor that most informants pointed out as a cause of social

and boy comparing

media depression,

themselves to another pair which is a more prettier drawing than the other two.

Outline of a girl and

Seeing other people doing good in life. I start to envy them and their

the text will be written

achievements. Also, social media tends to have its own norms that you

in a bubblehead

feel the need to comply to it and if you can’t you feel frustrated.

beside the girl’s head. (Informant E) Profiles with few

Other factors include few numbers of likes, comments and shares.

number of likes,

This leads to low self-esteem and feelings of being rejected.

comments and shares will be shown A text box with “seen”

(Reason 3) Seen or ignored messages

messages will be shown Actual negative

(Reason 4) Negative content

contents will be shown, bad news, killings and stupid posts. An outline of a person (Reason 5) Worsens already existing depression and the word “depression” will drop again and again on his head.

Brighter color

Prevention and raising awareness

scheme.

Spreading awareness

An outline of a person bringing a megaphone is surrounded by many other outlines of people