When Kyle Palmberg planned a research study for his capstone project as a psychology major at St. Mary's University of Minnesota in Winona, he wanted the focus to be topical and relevant to college students. I did.
His initial brainstorming centered around the impact of poor sleep quality on mental health.
“I specifically wanted to look at college students to find out how their sleep quality can be compromised in different ways, and how that can affect their mental health.” He said. As he reviewed the scientific literature, one variable kept popping up. “What kept coming up was the overuse of social media,” he says. “This is very important to my target audience, which is college students.”
Palmberg, 22, grew up surrounded by social media. He's heard plenty of warnings about the downsides of spending too much time online. He also observed that many of his colleagues seemed glued to their phones, feeling anxious or walking away from them if they had to leave their phones behind for more than a few minutes while on the go. I've seen it. time.
“From my perspective, having been very interested in psychology as an academic discipline, I think social media addiction is something that I personally identify with as well,” Palmberg said. “I can tell within myself when things are becoming harmful or vulnerable to abuse. I often see signs of addictive behavior in my colleagues and colleagues.”
Palmberg found much of the published research on the subject exciting, particularly a 2003 study on Internet gambling addiction.
“They were investigating how Internet gambling addiction permeates a person's behavior,” he said. Palmberg hypothesized that there may be behavioral similarities between online gambling addicts and social media addicts.
“Social media provides a convenient platform for users to interact with other users,” he said. “As users become addicted, they learn that they can return to that social platform again and again to meet their needs. The user's tolerance for having their social needs met increases. And we need to use social media more and more often to reap its benefits.”
Palmberg said the negative impact of increased reliance on social media is that time spent online takes away from real face-to-face interactions, leaving less time for basic personal care needs like sleep and exercise. It is said that it is a thing. This can ultimately have a negative impact on your mental health.
“When people develop a high tolerance for social media use, it creates internal and external conflicts,” he says. “They know it's wrong, but they keep using it. They relapse and have a hard time stopping.” Palmberg says using social media is a form of “diversion.” He said it could become. When people feel depressed or anxious, turning to that can help them feel better, at least momentarily. When they stop using, they feel a sense of withdrawal. This negative side effect causes relapse. ”
Palmberg wanted to devise a study that would examine college students' social media use and examine the relationship between various motivations for social media use and the likelihood of addictive behavior. His idea was implemented by his supervisor Molly O'Connor, an associate professor of psychology at St. Mary's University, who was intrigued by the clear connections between his subject matter and student life.
“We often find that students are addicted to social media,” O'Connor said. She knew Palmberg would have no trouble recruiting study participants because young people had first-hand experience and interest in the subject. “He focuses on college students, who are especially prone to addiction. They're interested in it and use it for classes, socializing, entertainment, self-recording, and more.”
O'Connor and colleagues at the university said many students are showing signs of this addiction.
“Students end up on their phones during class when they should be paying attention,” she says. “They can't help but check when they get a notification. They say they can't sleep, but if you ask them why, they'll say they scrolled on their phone before bed and couldn't sleep.”
The relationship between entertainment and addiction
Once his study was green-lighted by his advisors and approved by the university as human subjects research, Palmberg was given two months to recruit participants.
To gather research topics, he visited classes and gave short speeches. Students were then given the opportunity to sign up and provide their email address. Palmberg recruited his 86 participants in this way, and each was asked to complete an anonymous survey about his social media habits.
Palmberg said the main framework for his research is to better understand why college students use social media and the circumstances in which social media can be addictive and negatively impact mental health and well-being. I explained that there was. He also hypothesized that perceived problems with sleep quality might be related to social media addiction.
After collecting the survey, Palmberg said: “We basically threw the data into a big spreadsheet. We worked on it, played with it, and analyzed it.” He explained that it focuses on the motivations for media use.
Palmberg found that the most common motive for using social media among his subjects was for entertainment. Although some participants cited other motivations, the most “statistically significant” motive was entertainment, he said.
“Entertainment was not the only reason supported as the most supported reason for using social media in this study,” Palmberg said, adding, “For college students, it is statistically associated with social media addiction and perceived stress. That was the only motive for my analysis.” Entertainment motivation was also associated with poorer sleep quality. ”
He found a link between addiction to social media for entertainment and addictive behaviors, such as the inability to shut down apps or put away your phone for long periods of time. “People who use social media for entertainment are more likely to become addicted to social media than people who don't use social media for entertainment,” Palmberg said.
The structure of popular social media platforms reinforces addictive behaviors, he said. “The current trend in social media is leaning towards entertainment platforms like TikTok and Instagram. People just go there to kill time,” Palmberg said. These short, repetitive formats foster addiction, he said, because the dopamine high they produce is short-lived and users keep coming back for a temporary positive feeling. Ta.
Mr. O'Connor supports Mr. Palmberg's conclusions. Relying on social media platforms for entertainment fosters addiction, she says. This is evidenced by the actions of our students.
“The big realization I had was that interest in entertainment is a significant predictor of addiction. It is used by students who say, “I need to kill time,'' “I'm bored before bed,'' or “I want a change of pace.'' “Users want to be entertained more and more, which creates an addictive aspect,” O'Connor said. They are always looking for the next topic to talk about with their friends. ”
Palmberg said he doesn't think all social media use by college students needs to be addictive. “It's important for people to think that social media is not only harmful, but also something that can be used as a tool. Through my research, I want to emphasize that it's not all negative. It's more about moderation. It's possible to use social media responsibly, but like most things, it can be addictive.
Emphasis on digital wellbeing
Twice a year, students at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter are encouraged to take a closer look at social media use and its impact on their mental health in an effort to break free from digital addiction. I am. Charlie Potts, the university's interim dean of students, is leading the effort. This clearly aligns with his work and research interests.
At a biannual event known as “Digital Well-Being Week,” Gustavus students learn about the potential negative effects of social media overuse and strategies for expanding social networks without the help of technology .
Potts said the event has been held four times now, and students tell him they now look forward to it.
“We've gotten to the point where we've gotten comments from students saying, 'It's that time of year again,'” he said. Mr Potts continued that students appreciated the information and activities associated with Digital Wellbeing Week and were looking forward to a week focused on reducing the amount of time they spent on their mobile phones.
“They remember that we put a basket on every table in the cafeteria with a little card reminding them to leave their phones there and focus on talking to others,” he added. Ta. “The basket also includes cards that are conversation starters. The students are excited about it. They know the drill. It's something they want to do and it's something that feels good.”
Potts' own academic research has focused on mental health and belonging. Also, each fall, he leads a campus-wide student survey focused on well-being and how to balance phone use with other aspects of mental and physical health.
In the survey, Potts said, “We ask students, 'How much time do you spend on social media each day?'” how does that feel? 'Students were surprised to see the average amount of time Gusty spends online. The majority spend 4 to 7 hours a day on their phones. ”
This study employs a motivational interview style to help participants understand the fundamentals of why changing their social media behavior is valuable to their overall health and well-being. , focuses on small changes that can reduce participants' reliance on technology. Face-to-face interaction.
“We talk a lot with students about strategies they can use,” Potts says. “Subtle changes like plugging your phone in while you're sleeping across the room, or leaving your phone behind while you go to work out at a rec center. Also, mental health and mindfulness. , and also how to identify your values in what you consume and how it affects you.”
Although Professor Potts said he has encountered resistance from students (“you work with it and help them understand the value and think about how to make a change”) He said he has also heard a lot of positive feedback from students. About his research and his focus on digital wellbeing twice a year.
“What we found with our students was that deep down they knew that their relationship with their cell phones and social media was not having a positive impact on their lives. ,” Potts said. “They knew change was good, but they didn't know how to make it happen, who to talk to about it, or what tools they had at their disposal. It will help you understand how.”
This story was originally
Published by MinnPost.
