Looking at Facebook Makes Me Depressed

Looking At Facebook Makes Me Depressed - Some years back, a brand-new kind of interaction has conquered the globe by increasing considerably the means people enjoy news and home entertainment: television. At that time tv was a huge action for humanity, even if there were individuals who had a different viewpoint. The poet and dramatist TS Eliot, as an example, mentioned: "It is a medium of entertainment which permits countless people to listen to the very same joke at the same time, yet even so, they remain to be alone".

Facebook And Depression

Now you can apply the very same reasoning to social media networks, particularly Facebook, which in ten years has gotten to 1.3 billion clients, half of which passes an average of 18 mins logged. Facebook connects people around the globe. However, the influence of this social media is not as favorable as you might think.

Looking At Facebook Makes Me Depressed


An enhancing variety of research studies recommend that the opportunity to be "connected" with other people does not necessarily indicate to be happier; in fact, it can adversely influence our mood, because many individuals are attached however still are alone.

Hereof, psycho therapists of the University of Michigan and College of Louvain, have actually determined to strengthen the relationship in between making use of Facebook and an enjoyable life. These scientists asked a team of individuals to state 5 times a day for two weeks on their mood. So they found that making use of Facebook is related to a poor wellness. They also found that people claim they feel even worse after visiting the social media network, not previously.

Friendly World Syndrome: Everyone seems to be more happy and successful than us
Why using Facebook can affect our state of mind making us feel worse? These psycho therapists show that one of our fundamental needs is the social contact. Interpersonal relationships are an incredible source of comfort. However the social network does not give us the sort of social contact we require to stay healthy and balanced.

One possible explanation could be the straightforward envy. After all, Facebook permits us to see the success of people with whom we have actually shed get in touch with. Moreover, in a specific sense, this social media network has come to be a collection of bluster, an area where individuals gather their successes at work and in their personal life, upload photos of their wonderful family, of the costly vehicle or the phenomenal trip.

As a matter of fact, this sensation has a name: the "friendly globe síndrome", which refers to the tendency to think that all of them have a much better life than us. This phenomenon is the outcome of a result recognized by sociologists in 1970 called the "considerable globe síndrome", according to which, people that saw a lot of violence on television thought the globe was much more fierce than it truly was. Something comparable takes place to us with Facebook, considering pictures and also updates, we believe that the others are better than us, which decreases our contentment with life and also might even cause us anxiety.

Popularity Contest: The friendship paradox
There could be an additional problem underlying the dissatisfaction and despair that produces Facebook, the feeling that everyone is more preferred than us. It is known as the "friendship paradox" because, generally, our friends have a tendency to have more good friends than us.

This sensation results from a simple mathematical factor: if you're an autist, there is a good chance that amongst your buddies there are numerous extroverted individuals, which in turn have several pals. It is a bias that ends up being much more noticeable in socials media since with a peek at the account we can understand exactly how popular our friends are.

This discovery might distress many individuals making them assume that they are not worthy of interest or love from their friends, and this might trigger anxiety.

What would happen if you stop using Facebook?
This concern is what some psycho therapists of the Joy Study Institute of Copenhagen asked themselves, and to respond to it have actually recruited more than 1,000 customers of this social media. Fifty percent of them remained to utilize the internet daily, the other half has actually stopped totally.

It is significant that after just one week, 88% of people that have quit using the social media network reported feeling happier, less upset, much more fired up, less depressed, and more pleased with their lives. In a similar way, it was noted that their stress degree has decreased by 55%.

These psychologists have actually additionally located that we tend to focus on what others have. The research disclosed that 5 out of 10 people envy the terrific experiences that publish on the social network, 1 out of 3 individuals covet the apparent joy of others, and 4 of 10 envy the obvious success of others.

Obviously, isn't Facebook that is lowering our fulfillment with life and makes us feel negative, but our tendency to confront and also the cognitive biases that show up during the process. However the truth continues to be that the method which this network is structured greatly promotes such contrasts.

Therefore, the very best remedy is to focus on our real life, past the electronic profiles, and prevent contrasts that do not bring anything to us. We need to start to concentrate on what we really need, instead of on what others have.