Read the article “Surgeon General Warns That Social Media May Harm Children and Adolescents” on Perusall, and answer the below questions, in detail, after we discuss in class, and then post in the comment section. Let me know if you have any questions.
Read the article and then tell us:
- What is your relationship with social media? What positive or negative experiences have you had on social media? Overall, how do you feel about social media’s presence in your life?
- What rules or guidelines does your family have around technology? How do you feel about them? Would any of the surgeon general’s suggestions, such as keeping mealtimes device-free and creating a “family media plan,” work in your family?
- Do you agree with Dr. Murthy’s assessment that social media may pose mental health risks to young people? Should families, tech companies and the government do more to regulate young people’s use of it? Do you think this is an issue that deserves more attention and research? Why or why not?
- To what extent do you think social media companies have a responsibility to make their platforms safe for young people? Some have introduced age limits or have made young people’s accounts private automatically. Is that enough? Should they be doing more? If so, what?
My relationship with social media is pretty normal compared with some other people, but I would really like to spend less time on social media. Social media is a very good tool to stay in contact with the world and manage to create relationships with others, but it’s a very addictive platform.
My family never had any restrictions on social media or technology. I think it might be right if they had done it, that might have changed the way I spend my time on it.
I think adults, tech companies, etc. should take pay attention to this problem. As young people we don’t notice the damage and the consequences that social media can cause on our lives. On social media we are exposed to a large quantity of things that affect the way that we perceive the world and even ourselves in a negative way, causing mental health issues.
Some social media has some age restrictions, but as they say in the article, young people can lie about it, they don’t ask for any type of proof to confirm the age, so I would say that those restrictions are not very effective.
•I could say that I have a strong attachment with social media especially with TikTok and Instagram. One thing that I like about social media is that, it allows me to connect with my family and friends who are living in the Philippines. It also serves as my main source of entertainment and I also use it to gather information about whats happening about the world. However, I noticed that I am becoming more attach with social media especially with TikTok, that hardly a days goes by without me opening my TikTok app. My friends also say that I’m “addicted” with it, which proves that it has a negative effect on my well-being. Overall, I like that presence of social media in my life, it serves as my comfort place, a place where I can express myself and just be ME. I just need to lessen the time I spend on with it.
•My family and I believes that we should respect our food, therefore my family never allows phone on the table. I feel like everyone should follow this rule, because having a meal with your family is the one time that you will be able to bond with them and catch up with each other’s lives. Not having access with your phone for an hour won’t hurt your overall well-being, in fact it will serve as your time to disconnect with social media and technology.
•Yes, I totally agree with Dr. Murthy’s assessment. A lot of young people nowadays are prone to mental health because of the effect that social media brings to them. It makes them more insecure, anxious, and etc because of the “imaginary standards” that they’ve been seeing on social media. Families, tech companies, and government should pay more attention to this issue as it might cause a stir in the world, since most of the users nowadays are young people who are not knowledgeable enough about the impact of the real world.
•To be honest, I also thought of having each user provide their identification to verify their age when signing up for social media platforms. This way, social media companies will be able to stop young people from having access with their app and be expose with things that are inappropriate for them.
What is your relationship with social media?
What positive or negative experiences have you had on social media? Overall, how do you feel about social media’s presence in your life?
What rules or guidelines does your family have around technology?
How do you feel about them?
Would any of the surgeon general’s suggestions, such as keeping mealtimes device-free and creating a “family media plan,” work in your family?
Do you agree with Dr. Murthy’s assessment that social media may pose mental health risks to young people?
Should families, tech companies and the government do more to regulate young people’s use of it?
Do you think this is an issue that deserves more attention and research? Why or why not?
To what extent do you think social media companies have a responsibility to make their platforms safe for young people?
Some have introduced age limits or have made young people’s accounts private automatically. Is that enough?
Should they be doing more? If so, what?
What is your relationship with social media? What positive or negative experiences have you had on social media? Overall, how do you feel about social media’s presence in your life?
What rules or guidelines does your family have around technology? How do you feel about them? Would any of the surgeon general’s suggestions, such as keeping mealtimes device-free and creating a “family media plan,” work in your family?
Do you agree with Dr. Murthy’s assessment that social media may pose mental health risks to young people? Should families, tech companies and the government do more to regulate young people’s use of it? Do you think this is an issue that deserves more attention and research? Why or why not?
To what extent do you think social media companies have a responsibility to make their platforms safe for young people? Some have introduced age limits or have made young people’s accounts private automatically. Is that enough? Should they be doing more? If so, what?
What do you do with social media? Which was the best and worst experience of social media? How do you find social media in general?
Social media has been like a mixed bag for me At one hand I love how it connects me to friends and interests, But then there are days when I just don’t want to look at feeds because I feel like wasting time. We get drawn into the comparisons, where everyone else is havin’ the perfect life and that can be frustrating.
Social media has been like a mixed bag for me, in one hand I love how it connects me to friends and interests, But then there are days when I just don’t want to look at feeds because I feel like wasting time. We get drawn into the comparisons, where everyone else is having’ the perfect life and that can be frustrating.
My family already had a “device-free” at mealtimes since I was little, and I am trying to bring this to my life. Not only for my family but I use it every day in a way of respect for others. I don’t text or call my family or friends when we are eating or talking which is really important. It allows us to enjoy the present and the have conversations without interrupting.
To what extent do you think social media companies have a responsibility to make their platforms safe for young people? Some have introduced age limits or have made young people’s accounts private automatically. Is that enough? Should they be doing more? If so, what?
Social media companies have this age blocks and private accounts are first steps, but they could do so much more. They must work to block bad content and screen time limit.
We should beware of the dark side of social media, and learn how to use social media properly.
What is your relationship with social media? What positive or negative experiences have you had on social media? Overall, how do you feel about social media’s presence in your life
My relationship with social media is a mix of both positive and negative experiences. On the positive side, it allows me to stay connected with friends and family and share moments of my life with other people. I have also found social media platforms useful for networking, but it can be very addictive if you don’t know how to use it properly. I often like to spend less time on social media.
In my family, we have some ground rules around technology use. For example, we try to limit screen time in the evenings to ensure we spend time together and relax before bed. We also avoid using devices during family meals to ensure we have conversations and maintain that quality time. We also don’t use technology late at night to promote healthy sleep habits.
Yes, I agree with Dr. Murthy’s assessment that social media can pose risks to young people’s mental health. Research has shown that excessive use of social media can lead to a range of mental health issues, including anxiety, depression and feelings of isolation, especially among teenagers I believe that families, technology companies and the government should all play a role in regulating young people’s use of social media to create a safer environment
Age restrictions and making young users’ accounts private by default, but as Maria says, young people can lie and put a different age so those restrictions are not very effective.