jasdooit

When utilizing social media, we become aware of a vast array of information from all over the world, with varying levels of truth or authenticity. This variation exists across all content types, influenced by the different interests of social media users, which include platform owners, content creators, and the end-user who accesses this material. In other words, depending on our position within the social media landscape, we may encounter false, misleading, and in the worst cases, traumatic and damaging content. Most individuals today acquire knowledge from social media, whether it’s about politics, social trends, health, technology, DIYs (‘do-it-yourself’ guides), parenting, or languages. The list is endless. The open-access nature of social media, especially with the potential for anyone to become a content creator, as long as they have a camera or phone, a tripod, and a strong sense of confidence, is something we should approach carefully. A relevant real-life example would be a humorous one. Imagine walking through a crowd, stopping in front of anyone and listening completely trustingly to what they have to say, then moving on to the next random person, and another, and another, for hours! This is essentially what we do on social media, particularly on visual platforms. The chances of ten consecutive reels or posts conveying the same emotion are extremely low. Ten posts with different themes can lead us through ten distinct emotional responses, such as joy, surprise, fear, worry, anger, agitation, anticipation, disappointment, disgust, assurance, doubt, and confusion. The list is endless and unpredictable, just like human emotions themselves. At this point, we can already see the potential for significant harm to users’ cognitive and emotional reactions, especially because everything that appears on social media initially seems real to them. We don’t automatically consider social media content as untrue until we’ve watched and critically analyzed it. Since we react before evaluating its truth, we are emotionally affected long before deciding whether what we’ve seen is ‘real’ or ‘fake’. These effects are more pronounced in young people, whose judgment is not yet fully developed. However, vulnerability exists for all social media users, as emotional triggers affect both children and adults, even if they manifest differently. As a nation with a predominantly young population, it is crucial to pay attention to these issues and inform our people, especially the youth, to reduce the societal burden of mental health challenges associated with excessive social media use. Research already indicates that exposure to short-video content negatively affects children’s ability to learn, remember, and focus. These childhood issues often lead to more complex problems in adulthood, as early developmental stages are delicate and difficult to reverse. To avoid being overly theoretical, we must determine the best way to engage with social media, which is practically an essential social and economic force. There needs to be a focus on the productive use of social media from an early age: educating young people on its numerous opportunities while also warning them of its many dangers, including addiction, propaganda, explicit content, artificial intelligence, curated personas, digital illusions, fake news, cyberbullying, scams, etc., and teaching them how to protect themselves and their digital identities. It is worth noting that all of these factors have significantly contributed to the emotional rollercoaster that affects social media users. It is also important to promote awareness of holistic health, including mental and emotional well-being. For many people, as long as they are not physically ill, they find it hard to accept that they might need therapy or help. Education is needed in this area, as the harmful effects of mental and emotional problems are evident around us. Constant exposure of children to social media can shorten their attention spans and impact their cognitive development, making them shallow thinkers who neither process nor store information effectively in long-term memory. Many children lack proper sleep, experience mood swings, lose focus, struggle with real-world interactions, and often imitate risky behaviors they see online, unable to clearly distinguish between social media illusions and reality. However, with appropriate parental guidance, social media can benefit children. It can help them learn, be more creative, and feel part of the global community by broadening their understanding of the world. With parental control, children can develop emotionally while benefiting from social media. Shimbo Pastory is an advocate for positive social transformation and a student at the Loyola School of Theology, Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines. Website:www.shimbopastory.comProvided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).