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ore than half of Americans (64%) say that social media has a mostly negative effect† on the way things are going in the U.S. The national media often highlight the negative impacts of social media platforms, like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. But what about the good? Can social media be healthy for us? Before we get started on the good and the bad about social media, let’s take a look at who is using it and for what reasons. About 7 out of 10 Americans (72%)† have used social media at some point, and the most commonly used platforms are YouTube and Facebook. Not too surprisingly, young adults aged 18-29 are more likely to report using social media than older adults, particularly adults aged 65 years and older. Starting in 2009, women were slightly more likely to be social media users than men in the U.S.†, particularly on platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and TikTok. Interestingly, men are more likely to use Twitter, Reddit
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Pew Research Center Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking ††
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and LinkedIn than women are. People use social media for many reasons, including social connection†, activism†, and getting news and information.† But concerns about online harassment†, the spread of misinformation† and political censorship† can give us pause about using social media. So, as we navigate the social media landscape, here are some reflections, observations and recommendations for healthy social media use. One of the most frequently asked questions about social media and media use in general is about time limits and restrictions. How much is too much time spent with media? There has been much debate among physicians, particularly pediatricians, about the right amount of media use. While there are no specific recommended daily social media time limits, we can think about our consumption of media like our consumption of food and monitor our media diet similarly to how we watch our food diet. As much as we might want to eat unlimited amounts of ice cream, that would not be a healthy choice, and, in the long run, we would pay the consequences of choosing too much “sometimes” food. Our media choices are similar. We could spend hours scrolling through Instagram or Facebook or watching TikToks, but too much may take us away from other activities and opportunities for social interaction with family and friends or simple quiet time with ourselves. So, moderation in both food consumption and social media consumption is key to healthy living. Some may even argue that social media use takes away time from healthier habits. Displacement
24 Themis Summer 2022 | Feature
theory suggests that time spent with electronic media, in this case social media specifically, displaces time spent in other pursuits, such as reading or exercise or studying. However, evidence shows media time does not displace other academic time or noble endeavors; rather, it is more likely to displace other leisure activities. Again, let’s think about our food diet. We may not choose an apple over ice cream, even though an apple is the healthier choice; rather, we may look for other sweet treats if our freezer is empty. If you find yourself spending a lot of time on social media, you may want to find other activities to support a healthy you. Related to displacement theory is the notion of active versus passive social media use. Reading comments or discussions, watching videos and looking at pictures fall into the category of passive social media use. However, liking/favoriting/voting on content, sharing content with others, commenting or responding to posts and creating your own content are examples of active social media use. Research has shown that passive social media use†† is more frequently
