JON GABRIEL: Teens spent the pandemic in front of screens. And we wonder why they feel hopeless?
Meta, Instagram’s parent company, found that adolescents face challenges with social comparison, social pressure and negative peer interactions on their app. The internal studies showed that “teens who struggle with mental health say Instagram makes it worse.”
A university study from Singapore showed that teens who received fewer “likes” reported more negative emotions and thoughts about themselves.
As Mitch Prinstein, the chief science officer of the American Psychological Association, put it, “kids have a biological vulnerability to want social rewards, and now we’re handing them a way to get it – on steroids.”
Then, COVID-19 entered the picture. Beginning in 2020, teenagers were locked out of schools and extracurricular activities to embrace a life mediated entirely by screens.
More from Ace of Spades: Depression and Suicidality Surge Among Teenage Girls and This Correlates With Smartphone Usage. Internet Addict Taylor Lorenz Says It’s Just “This Late-Stage Capitalist Hellscape” That’s to Blame, Not My Precious TikTok!