Originally posted by michael hengeveld on May 31, 2018
…the possible connection to anxiety and depression. A number of years ago, schools across the district (and Canada) conducted a student census through the third party software Tell Them From Me (www.tellthemfromme.com). One of the big findings at our school was increased reporting of anxiety. Since that time I have had people tell me (at “dinner parties”) that anxiety in youth is on the rise, and that smartphones may be to blame.
It is not easy to find answers to this. It’s easy to find media reports of increased anxiety in youth (https://globalnews.ca/news/530141/young-minds-stress-anxiety-plaguing-canadian-youth/) but Statistics Canada shows the increase as less than 1% in a year, with decreases in some provinces (https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/publications/diseases-conditions/report-canadian-chronic-disease-surveillance-system-mood-anxiety-disorders-canada-2016.html#a18). This report (https://www.anxiety.org/smartphone-use-and-its-relationship-to-anxiety-and-depression) suggests that there may be a link between increased anxiety and smartphones, but the correlation is moderate, at best. Moreover, they don’t know if smartphones increase anxiety (and depression), or if smartphones are used more frequently by those suffering mental illness.
Many of us have commented upon the “always on” element of mobile technology. It is a grand experiment, to be sure, with possibly unexpected outcomes. Perhaps it makes people more anxious and depressed? It seems to me that the jury is still out on this.
I CAN say that Twitter became more depressing when politicians came on board.
Mike
Although the post was published two years ago, we still don’t have a clear answer to the question today. For me, I’m not sure whether my smartphone makes me feel anxious or depressed, but I do feel disconnected if I don’t check it for a while. Text messages and social media are the two things that keep me glued to my phone. I never thought I would give up my social media and guess it would be a hard decision. CNBC technology reporter, Christina Farr (2018), said, “For me, it was just a really positive experience to take a break from social media. When I was on Facebook or Instagram all the time, I was just constantly seeing these amazing vacation pictures and people getting married and having babies… and just somehow doing all that, excelling in their careers… and it just always feels like I was falling behind. Without the constant stream of updates about my friends, I find myself less anxious about my own life…”
Are you willing to give it a try?
Below is Christina’s full story:
https://www.cnbc.com/video/2018/12/04/social-media-detox-what-it-is-like-to-quit-instagram-and-facebook.html?jwsource=cl