Social Media: Is It Rotting Your Brain?

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Sep 12, 2024

Social media has a love/hate hold on us, fueling both addiction and anxiety. Experts discuss its impact on attention spans and mental health, raising concerns about increased depression and body image issues. Counterintuitively, it may also enhance friendships for kids. Practical tips for reducing usage offer hope for reclaiming focus and well-being. There's even a playful nod to New Zealand's Bird of the Year competition, reminding us to engage with the world beyond our screens!

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ANECDOTE

Social Media Usage and Feelings

Many people express negative feelings after using social media, yet spend hours scrolling daily.
One interviewee admitted to spending over three hours on Instagram in a single day.

INSIGHT

Social Media and Attention Span

People report that social media shortens their attention spans, making it hard to focus on books or conversations.
This concern aligns with headlines claiming social media's negative impact on mental health and attention.

INSIGHT

Decreased Attention Spans

Gloria Mark's research shows a significant decrease in online attention spans over two decades.
Attention spans have dropped from an average of 2.5 minutes to 47 seconds.

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Social media. Many of us don’t feel very good when we’re on it, and yet we sometimes spend hours a day scrolling, eyeballs glued to our screens. Some experts say that social media is causing a mental health crisis, and governments are even talking about banning social media for kids. So what’s going on — can social media really shorten our attention span, hurt our body image or make us feel depressed? To find out, we talk to psychologists Professor Gloria Mark, Dr. Sophia Choukas-Bradley, Professor Silje Steinsbekk, and Dr. Rachel Hogg.

Resources to help with disordered eating:

United States: National Eating Disorders: 800-931-2237 https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/get-help/
International resources and general mental health resources can be found here: https://resources.byspotify.com/

Find our transcript here: https://bit.ly/ScienceVsSocialMedia

Gloria Mark’s book, Attention Span: https://gloriamark.com/, and Substack: https://gloriamark.substack.com/

Vote for the New Zealand Bird of the Year here: birdoftheyear.org.nz — we are supporting the tawaki piki toka!

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Our love/hate relationship with social media

(06:36) Is social media ruining our attention spans?

(14:04) Why is it so hard to stop looking at social media?

(18:39) Is social media making us feel depressed?

(25:56) Can social media affect your body image?

(34:02) Tips for getting off social media.

This episode was produced by Meryl Horn, with help from Wendy Zukerman, Rose Rimler, Ekedi Fausther-Keeys, and Michelle Dang. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Fact checking by Erica Akiko Howard. Mix and sound design by Sam Bair. Music written by Bobby Lord, Emma Munger, Bumi Hidaka and So Wylie. Thanks to the researchers we spoke to, including Professor Hunt Allcott, Dr. Jacqueline Nesi, Professor Patricia Conrad, Dr. Robert Kraut, Dr. Andrew Westbrook, and Dr. Niklas Ihssen. A big thanks to everyone who talked to us about social media in Washington Square Park! And thanks to Lori Segal, Ally Settelmayer and Whitney Potter. And extra thanks to Christopher Suter, Beverly, the Zukerman Family and Joseph Lavelle Wilson.

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