Social Media Stress Can Lead to Social Media Addiction

Posted on August 29, 2019

While it has been proven that social media websites like Facebook cause stress in users, individuals fail to take some time off their online socializing networks. Instead, they turn to other platforms whenever a particular social networking site (SNS) leads them to feel stressed. This enables them to take their attention off what stresses them out by focusing on other forms of content in the vast world of social media.

444 Facebook members were involved in a study that examines their social media usage. The participants had a tendency to shift their focus to other social media activities whenever the current platform is causing them stress, like texting friends and looking at pictures uploaded by other users. Such a wide usage of SNS results in a higher risk of being addicted to social media.

A team of researchers from various universities analyzed the different SNS that cause technostress, including suffering from excessive social demands, feeling that their private lives are being invaded and being exposed to too much information. Two coping strategies employed by the users were also taken into consideration. The first strategy involved individuals seeking activities that are not related to social media, such as talking to their loved ones off the platforms. For the second strategy, users would indulge in other activities available on the same social media platform.

Individuals who engage in social media activities more frequently are more likely to continue using SNS when experiencing stress. This shows that the users treat SNS as a coping mechanism that enables them to be distracted from stressors.

As a result, these excessive habits build up a compulsion for usage of social medial platforms. Rather than taking a break from SNS, individuals will continue using the same platforms but engage in other types of activities which might ultimately lead to an addiction.


Category(s):Other, Stress Management

Source material from Science Daily