Is there really a boogieman behind the screen? Amira explores this question.

Disclaimer: I am not an expert. This article also contains sensitive topics, self-harm, eating disorders etc that may be triggering for some readers.

Every cell phone owning adolescent/young adult has heard it at some point: cell phones are bad for you, they’re the reason you’re depressed, etc. Many of us have contested it, many mental disorders are not caused by technological factors.
But could there be some truth to that sweeping statement?
Could cell phones and social media really be impacting our mental health that badly?

While browsing Goodreads I came across a certain nonfiction book. It was titled The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Caused an Epidemic of Mental Illness. Originally, I thought, oh it’s just another stereotypical book about people complaining about “those damn phones”, but after looking at it further
I became interested. I bought a copy and have found myself very engrossed in the information presented. Despite certain points raised, many reviews on Goodreads do indeed have seemingly legitimate holes to poke in the author’s argument, so I was thinking, why not do the same. Let’s explore the arguments presented and see if I can piece together a somewhat achievable answer to “is it really the damn phones?”

Let’s start with the information provided to us by social psychologist Johnathan Haidt, in The Anxious Generation. The book goes in depth to the ever-expanding research on social media and its effect on the mental health of children. The most interesting thing provided by Haidt is a series of diagrams showing a sudden decline in the mental health of adolescents in many developed nations around the world in 2010, despite evidence of improvement in the 2000’s. Coincidentally (or not so), this was the time in which cellphones were popularised and social media became far more widespread. Figure 1.1 in Chapter 1 shows a 145% increase since 2010 in rates of self reports of major depression in girls via a symptom checklist, and a 161% increase in boys. This is an alarmingly high rate. While this particular study was concentrated on adolescents aged 12-17, similar levels of mental disorders and distress have presented around the world, including adults up to the age of 49 who have all seen an increase in anxiety levels since 2010.

On the other hand, there are many different reasons for this change in reported mental health outcomes besides phones. For one, our understanding of mental disorders has changed significantly in the past half a century, even compared to a decade or two ago there is much more awareness around these disorders. They are also far less stigmatised and people are less ashamed of seeking a diagnosis.

What gives the most evidence in cause for alarm however is not the increase in diagnosis rates but the increase in signs of mental distress. Figure 1.9 in the same chapter shows the rates of reported self harm in U.K teens aged 13-16 over a 14 year timespan. This showed a 78% increase in girls and a 134% increase in boys since 2010. Australia’s Health 2022 Data Insights reported an 81% increase in girls and a 51% increase in boys ages 12-24 being hospitalised for mental health since 2010. There could still be many factors at play, whether it’s an increase in reporting or an increase in people seeking professional help. One theory could even be that in 2010 when social media became more widely used people had a positive influence on others to seek help.

There is, of course, more evidence that shows specific ways in which social media very much does have negative effects. For one, there is addiction. Back in 2021, former Facebook employee Frances Haughen exposed the strategies Meta, specifically Facebook, utilised to keep users scrolling. A screenshot of an “internal presentation” was leaked as a part of this, showing that Facebook used a model based on the understanding that “Teens’ decisions and behaviour are mainly driven by emotion, the intrigue of novelty and reward.” Essentially Facebook uses an emotional feedback loop to keep us coming back for more, whether that is through positive or negative emotions, it keeps us engaged and connected to the content that is being shown. This is a very likely reason for social media’s contributions to poor mental health, as it is engaging with our negative emotions. When we are constantly stuck in this feedback loop, it makes it hard to stop and can be how addictions form, impacting sleep, social life, and relationships, all with the potential to negatively contribute to self esteem and mental health.

Perhaps one of the most harmful elements of social media is how it purposefully plays into our fears and insecurities. Algorithms created for social media are specifically designed to promote and push content that users have previously engaged with, another way to keep users online. The more you look at one topic, the more content you will receive about it. The potential here is for further fear mongering. For example, if a young girl is already concerned about her looks or her body weight, she may click on a post promoting weight loss or diet culture. Therefore, the algorithm will continue to push content about weight loss, diet culture, and likely as a result disordered eating. The algorithm plays into her insecurities, continuing to feed her harmful messages until they resonate in her, and she can’t escape them. Every time she opens the app she will be fed with these posts and likely won’t be able to stop looking at them, because of this emotional loop Facebook has designed. The worst part is, Frances Haugen has proved Facebook and Meta are aware of these effects. In fact, some workers of Facebook have admitted to not allowing their children to use the app for these reasons. The same presentation that detailed how teens were driven by these emotions, including negative ones, discussed in later slides had the goal to “advise other Facebook employees on how to keep her ‘engaged’ for longer with rewards, novelty, and emotions. Suggestions included making it easier for teens to open multiple accounts and implementing ‘stronger paths to related interest content’”. If social apps have the intention of creating echo chambers in which we are stuck in our own emotions to create engagement, then we are stuck in a cycle of fear mongering and harmful messaging.

So what does this all mean? Is it the phones? The reality is that smartphones and social media have been around for a short amount of time in the grand scheme of things. Therefore psychologists and researchers are still trying to discover the exact effects these technologies have on brains, particularly in those without a developed prefrontal cortex. While we cannot say for certain right now that people are entirely right in saying it is “the damn phones”, we can say that they are pushing harmful behaviours and ideals. Regardless, if you are struggling with your mental health, do not feel like your struggles are invalidated because your online habits may be contributing. Whether it’s genetic, or influenced, mental health struggles are always important and real. Do not be afraid to reach out to others for help and find healthy solutions that work for you.

Places to reach out to for mental health support: 

Need To Talk?- 1737 via text 

Lifeline- 0800 Lifeline or free text Help (4357)