heavy use of social media is linked to mental illness

Question

Youngsters report problems with anxiety, depression, sleep and “FoMO”

Comments

While I agree with the claim, and there are many facts to back up the claim. I'm apprehensive of the article you chose to back up your claim. I'm always skeptical when it comes to .com websites because typically there is a lot of ad revenue but can have a specific bias if a certain company is sponsoring the article. I also am skeptical is the only resource to back up their claim is a survey that consisted of 5k Americans in 2015. The data is pretty dated, and I think there are more negative effects within the last ten years.  I really enjoyed reading this article because it was put out by a hospital talked more about the scientific effects of what is going on with your brain when you are interacting with social media.

https://www.mcleanhospital.org/essential/it-or-not-social-medias-affecting-your-mental-health

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This claim is very well supported as they used direct evidence from sources like the CEO of Facebook and other outside research to support this claim.

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This claim about social media being a link to mental illness in young adults is a well backed statement. After analyzing the article provided in the post, I cross analyzed it with a more recent article from McLean Hospital. Mclean provides professional opinions and multiple articles that back the information provided within The Economist article. Along with mentioning the same results from the 2018 British study illustrated with a graph by The Economist article.

Source: https://www.mcleanhospital.org/essential/it-or-not-social-medias-affecting-your-mental-health

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I totally relate to what you’re saying. Social media can often be overwhelming, especially when it seems like everyone else is living their best life and achieving so much. It can definitely magnify insecurities and make you question your own worth or progress. It's important to remember that what we see online isn't always the full picture, and everyone has their own unique journey. Taking a step back and focusing on real-life connections and self-care can really help with staying grounded.

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I agree with this statement. The claim is correct and there are statistics to prove it. The articles are linked and include relevant facts relating increase of social media with decrease in mental health. There are also many reputable articles published on the same topic with the same conclusion.

Answer 1

This article from The Economist claims that the heavy use of social media by young people (ages 14-21) can negatively impact their mental health. They support this claim by presenting a 2017 survey by the Royal Society for Public Health, a reliable charity that is dedicated to doing research in support of public health. The link that they embedded was no longer working, but I was able to locate the study on their website, (https://www.rsph.org.uk/our-work/campaigns/status-of-mind.html) and it aligns with the claims presented in the article, that the use of social media is linked to worsened sleep, anxiety, depression, FOMO, bullying, and worsened self-image. They used two other studies as well, both of which were linked and were legitimate studies. I was also able to find several other reliable sources making the same claims, such as UC Davis Health (https://health.ucdavis.edu/blog/cultivating-health/social-medias-impact-our-mental-health-and-tips-to-use-it-safely/2024/05#:~:text=Mental%20health%20impacts,reward%20center%20by%20releasing%20dopamine.), Yale medicine (https://www.yalemedicine.org/news/social-media-teen-mental-health-a-parents-guide), and the National Library of Medicine (https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9915628/). This proves that The Economists claim is legitimate, because it is based on reliable research and evidence, and aligns with many other research studies.

Comments

I found this to be a rather informative fact check! you have a strong thesis with evidence to back up your claim. You structure your argument clearly and effectively, leading to a clear and concise answer! well done

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Great job tracking down the original study after the link was broken—shows solid fact-checking skills. You’ve also done well in cross-referencing multiple credible sources like UC Davis Health, Yale Medicine, and the National Library of Medicine to strengthen the claim’s validity. One thing to consider: while the studies link social media use to mental health issues, do any of them establish a causal relationship, or is it more of a correlation? Either way, your fact-check is thorough and well-supported!

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This is a great factcheck because it thoroughly verifies the claims that were made in the Economist article. The article asserts that heavy social media use among young people negatively impacts their mental health, and the 2017 Royal Society for Public Health surgery cited in the article supports this claim. Even though the original link to the study was broken, you were able to find the full report on their website which was good and helpful, confirming the article’s accuracy. You were also very consistent when finding evidence across multiple reputable studies that reinforced the claim, leading to a very solid fact check.

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This is a great fact check. I liked that you checked where the economist is getting their data from and found other reliable sources, like the National Library of Medicine, to check if all the studies had the same conclusions.

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You have lots of creditable sources to back up your fact check which makes it good.

Answer 2

The Economist article discusses how young people aged 14-24, believe that platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter exacerbate anxiety, depression, and sleep deprivation. Social media use has been linked to body image issues, cyberbullying, and the "fear of missing out". Additionally, research tracked Facebook users over time, finding a correlation between increased activity and a decline in mental health. The NCBI conducted a study that explores similar concerns but provides a more structured scientific approach. They examined the specific psychological mechanisms behind social media use and found a link between heavy exposure to social media and an increased risks of anxiety and depression due to constant social comparison, cyberbullying, and the addictive nature of these platforms. This study aligns with the findings from The Economist. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9915628/

Comments

I think your fact check is a great start but feel like you could of shown more evidence. When you talk about research on Facebook users, it would help your argument to provide the link to the research and say who has conducted the research. Linking the NCBI research and article is helpful to prove the claim true, and adding a resource for the other research would make your factcheck more reliable.

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This is an excellent fact check, as you were able to find a much better source that is more reliable.  You additionally gave us more information on the claim instead of just reiterating one sentence, you informed us more on why it was a true claim.

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This is a great fact check with insightful information, clear analysis, and a credible source. However, I think using more evidence, such as sources, (or even just diving deeper into evidence already presented) could strengthen your fact-check, making it more credible!

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This is a good fact check because you thoroughly explain the original source linked in the original claim and list facts that back it up. You also linked a second additional source that's credible and backs up the claim even further. However, it would be more efficient if you explained this source as well and stated facts that support the claim.

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Social media’s impact on mental health is concerning, with studies linking excessive use to anxiety, depression, and social comparison, highlighting the need for awareness and balance.

Answer 3

The Economist article, “How heavy use of social media is linked to mental illness,” briefly explains the increase in mental health issues, like anxiety and depression, that social media has had on individuals aged 14-24. To further prove this claim, the article, “The Social Dilemma: Social Media and Your Mental Health” (https://www.mcleanhospital.org/essential/it-or-not-social-medias-affecting-your-mental-health), expands on this idea by saying, “[Fear of missing out] can create anxiety and depression. When people look online and see they’re excluded from an activity, it can affect thoughts and feelings, and can affect them physically.” This proves that the article from The Economist is not misinformation and is telling the truth about how extended use of social media sites can decrease an individual’s mental health.

Comments

I like how you used another article to back up the claim made by The Economist. However, it would have been helpful to include more sources to further prove its validity, especially with quantitative statistics. It's also important to explain how these two sources are connected specifically (was The Social Dilemma article referenced in The Economist article or did you look up the claim separately?)

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I like your summary of the initial post, it helps to give the reader context and show what evidence you will be using to back up your claim. I also like how you used the other article, but I think you could have used an additional source especially because the effects of social media have been researched so extensively

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I like your use of furthering the discussion by adding the source “The social dilemma” this is a very thoroughly conducted study and goes into depth on how exactly social media is designed to get you addicted, and how that can impact your mental health. Tristan Harris, one of the main contributors for this documentary was actually a former Google design ethicist, and had a first hand look at how tech companies and major cooperations design their products to be more addictive.

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A great straightforward summary that overall validates the claim. In providing another article, you were able to further link it to the current article as well. Did your other article provide any other studies or data in return?

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You did a good job of fact-checking the source by using another reliable source to see if they had the same claims.  I believe this could be further proven by including facts or statistics in your claim. This would pull in the literary device of logos, and be more informative for the audience.

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You’ve made a strong connection between The Economist article and the additional source you cited. By highlighting the specific example of FOMO, you successfully show how social media’s influence can lead to real emotional and physical effects to human. This strengthens the argument that The Economist is sharing reliable information that are supported by credible sources.

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You provided a clear and solid summary that supports the claim. Connecting it to another article strengthened the argument. Did that article include any other studies or data to further back it up? Overall, great job!

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This is a great fact check. there is a good connection and used good sources that are credited.

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This is a good fact check! great that you added another source to prove how social media can affect mental health. good to grab all the information.

Answer 4

This article from The Economist makes the claim that “Heavy use of social media by young people can have negative effects on their mental health.” They link social media usage to anxiety, depression, FOMO, lack of sleep, and negative self-image. The article supports their claim by providing a 2017 survey by the Royal Society for Public Health. The claims from this study match with the claims in the article. I looked into the other sources they used as well, all of which proved to be reliable. I looked into this claim further and found a variety of other reliable sources which share the same claim, such as The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory: Social Media and Youth Mental Health, which expands on this claim explaining, “Excessive and problematic social media use, such as compulsive or uncontrollable use, has been linked to sleep problems, attention problems, and feelings of exclusion among adolescents. Sleep is essential for the healthy development of adolescents. A systematic review of 42 studies on the effects of excessive social media use found a consistent relationship between social media use and poor sleep quality, reduced sleep duration, sleep difficulties, and depression among youth. Poor sleep has been linked to altered neurological development in adolescent brains, depressive symptoms, and suicidal thoughts and behaviors. On a typical weekday, nearly 1-in-3 adolescents report using screen media until midnight or later. While screen media use encompasses various digital activities, social media applications are the most commonly used applications by adolescents.” (https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/sg-youth-mental-health-social-media-advisory.pdf) 

Comments

I believe you've analyzed this article well! I appreciate how you were able to pull from the article for information backing up the claim, as well as being able to go into multiple different sources such as official government health websites. Additionally, you could have condensed the second source of information and instead referenced certain quotes and expanded upon them.

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I think this was a really good analyzation, you used many different stats to prove why you believe this article so true.

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I like how you backed up your points with reliable sources like the U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory and provided various data points verifying the claim of the original post. However, I've found that it’s always worth noting that not all social media use has the same effects on the same people. That being said, great fact-check and I also believe this claim to be true based on research, these posts, and personal experience.

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I like how you used sources like The Economist. The Economist is a trustworthy source. The article you cited supports the idea that social media can impact mental health. Especially the late night scrolling on Instagram. Social media use can alter human hormones and make it difficult to produce dopamine naturally.

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Your fact check is well-rounded and does a good job of supporting the original claim with another credible source! I especially like how you referenced the U.S. Surgeon General's Advisory on Social Media and Young Mental Health. In many of the other replies, I found there to be a repetition in the same sources used, and this was the first one that mentioned something different! This source is unique as well because it comes from a government-level publisher, making the discussion go beyond what we know from researchers. This was an interesting fact check!

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Thank you for your answer to this post! You thoroughly analyzed the sources the original poster used to backup their claim and expanded the amount of credible sources that also prove this claim. I was surprised to learn that 1 in 3 teenagers stay up past midnight on their screens. Overall, you fully researched the claim from relable sources to create a sound post.

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I thought this was a very well done response, however I would recommend not doing so long of a direct quote because it's harder to follow along and it basically just quotes the website.

Answer 5

Looking further into the survey that tracked a group of 5,208 Americans between 2013 and 2015, there is definitely a decrease in mental health associated with Facebook activity according to the charts and tables on the Semantic Scholar website. With 294 Citations and 71 References, the Association of Facebook Use with Compromised Well-Being: A Longitudinal Study is a very reliable survey proving this claim to be true. The source and abundant additional supporting information is legitimate. 

https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Association-of-Facebook-Use-With-Compromised-A-Shakya-Christakis/5270606dec382cfd50e925467ba35dac44654fc1

Comments

I like how you included a study and data to confirm that the claim is true. Maybe you could site some specific data from the study that shows the link between Facebook activity and a decrease in mental health.

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The statistical data included from the study enhances the validity to your statement. I think something that could make your fact-check even better is analyzing the article provided in the claim to further support that the statement is true.

Answer 6

The article from The Economist that claims heavy use of social media is linked to mental illness is completely true. The article states "But they also said that the platforms exacerbated anxiety and depression, deprived them of sleep, exposed them to bullying and created worries about their body image and “FOMO” (“fear of missing out”). Academic studies have found that these problems tend to be particularly severe among frequent users". This claim of frequent issues of anxiety, depression and sleep deprivation line up with The National Library of Medicine's article on Link between excessive social media use and psychiatric disorders. 

The story states "Social media use is the second leading cause of disability among psychiatric disorders". It also says "However, unrestrained use of social media can lead to the development of many psychosocial problems, such as disturbed sleep4–6, decreased subjective happiness7, and poor academic performance8,9, in addition to anxiety and depression6,10". This article explains how social media and mental illness directly coincide wth one another. When an individual has a problem with their mental health they often lean onto social media, and when one examines their mental illness it can often come from chronic social media use. Therefore proving the claim that heavy use of social media is linked to mental illness as true. 

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10129173/

Comments

This review is very helpful on why this article is true. You looked into the sources and the evidence that the article used and found a second article to back up the claim from The National Library of Medicine.

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i like that you went in depth with your analysis, and provided a government issued website to factcheck. i also like that you used quotes and data points.

Answer 7

The article shared shows some research studies for people in age groups 14-24.  The research shows how almost all social media platforms have negative effects with bullying, FOMO, and depression.  To go along with this article another one says, "Using that data, the organization drew some conclusions on the relationship between high school students' social media use and bullying, feelings of hopelessness, and suicide risk. The findings show that most students use social media frequently and it significantly affects their mental health." 

Frequent social media use tied to bullying and suicide risk, CDC finds | Mashable

Comments

I looked into the source you used, and while reliable, quoting the original CDC document would have been more useful and strengthened your claim and reasoning here. Besides this, your claim helps the original poster out.

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think analyzing the quote you pulled from the source you used would be beneficial as opposed to just including what they said. Can you add how valid each source is as well? I do like the information you pulled from the article though, it correlates well to support the claim.

Answer 8

This article from the Economist explains the effect on young people that spend a great amount of time on social media, supporting that heavy users can exacerbate anxiety, depression, deprived sleep, bullying and create worries about body image FOMO. Doing some research on other studies like the one conducted at Columbia Psychiatry it is seen the “same effects” (“Smartphones, Social Media, and Their Impact on Mental Health”) that heavy users have in social media aligning with the claim the Economist makes. According to an article from the university of Staford they also claims that “social media addiction has a strong link with mental health problems” (“Social Media Addiction and Mental Health: The Growing Concern for Youth Well-Being | Stanford Law School”). In this article they also mention several studies conducted through diverse sources pointing and proving that the heavy use of social media has a strong link to mental illness.

Comments

Please include source links for anything you cite in your fact-check (re: The Economist).

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https://www.columbiapsychiatry.org/research/research-areas/child-and-adolescent-psychiatry/sultan-lab-mental-health-informatics/research-areas/smartphones-social-media-and-their-impact-mental-health

https://law.stanford.edu/2024/05/20/social-media-addiction-and-mental-health-the-growing-concern-for-youth-well-being/

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You did a great job summarizing and backing up The Economist's claims with evidence from other sources and the studies from Columbia Psychiatry and Stanford really reinforced the point that heavy social media use is tied to mental health issues!

Answer 9

This claim can be deemed as true, as according to the linked article, “The most convincing effort was a survey that tracked a group of 5,208 Americans between 2013 and 2015. It found that an increase in Facebook activity was associated with a future decrease in reported mental health.” After diving further, this study was done by the Semantic Scholar Organization which can be proven to be a reliable source. This statements in both articles support the idea that the constant use of social media can deplete one's mental health.

Sources

https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Association-of-Facebook-Use-With-Compromised-A-Shakya-Christakis/5270606dec382cfd50e925467ba35dac44654fc1?p2df

https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2018/05/18/how-heavy-use-of-social-media-is-linked-to-mental-illness?utm_medium=cpc.adword.pd&utm_source=google&ppccampaignID=17210591673&ppcadID=&utm_campaign=a.22brand_pmax&utm_content=conversion.direct-response.anonymous&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjw68K4BhAuEiwAylp3kojZc-_RSnDsZNcqsrkgak4j9Q8JBp2LzzSAIP-uPjHy9VeuAY_qzBoCFfEQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Comments

Hi there! I liked how you got right to the point that the claim was true based on the article, Which was exactly what we needed to know. We wanted to see if the claim was true or if it was misleading. So it's great that you were able to figure that out. Although you did state a reason as to why the claim was true, I would try to expand more on what you read in the articles the person provided, as well as more reasons as to why you agreed this claim was true to really win over the people that are reading your fact check. That why they have more then a reason to believe that these articles are true for the claim. Good Job!

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A nice job determining the claim as true. By diving further and searching the studies, it's a great way knowing it's a valuable source! However, it would've been further better if you provided more evidence from other articles in return that could further backup your claim. Do you think there's other studies that can further justify this claim?

Answer 10

This is true. The article from the economist claims that constant use of social media platforms by younger generations causes a negative impact on their mental health. In the article the reference and link both a survey and an experiment that's contents back up the claims in the article. Not only did the content of the article back up the claim but when I searched "heavy use of social media linked to mental illness", there were many different articles that backed up the claim. Sources like NIH and Stanford law both had articles with the same claim, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10129173/, https://law.stanford.edu/2024/05/20/social-media-addiction-and-mental-health-the-growing-concern-for-youth-well-being/.

Comments

Your answer is clear, concise, and aptly addresses the prompt. However, I find it a bit lacking in details. Perhaps, you could include some brief overviews of some of the top sources that support the claim made in the original source. Putting some outside sources in conversation with one another to support the original source would enhance the credibility of your answer immensely.