Addiction to Social Media: The Cold Hard Facts
The first social media platform was created in 1997 when SixDegrees.com was launched, enabling internet users to exchange messages within their network connections after setting up a profile. Between 1997 and now, a plethora of new social media websites and applications have launched, creating a new era of internet users and leading to more screen time. This increased screen time is often linked to an addiction to social media by many researchers and scientists.
However, before we conclude that the modern era is replete with internet users who have a social media addiction problem, we need to look at some cold hard facts to back this claim.
What Is Social Media Addiction?
Social media addiction is the behavioral or psychological dependency of an individual on social media platforms that often leads to impairments in human function across several domains for a prolonged period.
Those who suffer from social media addiction feel the unavoidable urge to utilize social media platforms – often daily. Such excessive use can lead to impairments in several other areas of life.
Facts That Prove Most of Us Have an Addiction to Social Media
Researchers have conducted thousands of analyses of different target audiences to find whether social media addiction is prevalent amongst different groups and the general public. The following are some of the most recent social media addiction statistics and social media addiction facts backing the claim that there is a growing problem of addiction to social media in the United States and other parts of the world:
1. 16 to 33 Million US Citizens Have an Addiction to Social Media
Addiction Center estimated that roughly 5% to 10% of American citizens suffer from social media addiction. This means that 16 to 33 million people out of the total US population of 333 million are addicted to social media.
Additionally, in 2017, Technology in Society published a report estimating that the number of people with an addiction to social media will increase rapidly, taking the total number of addiction sufferers to 333 million worldwide by the end of 2022.
2. More Than Half of the Underage Kids Are On Social Media
A research analysis was conducted on children's attitudes, and media use in 2017. It was concluded that more than half of the kids aged between 11 and 12 have personal social media profiles despite several platforms’ minimum age requirement being 13 years.
This fact is often not taken into account when estimating the total number of social media users, which was 4.55 billion in 2021 or 57.6% of the global population. There was a whopping 409 million increase over the year, leading to this staggering number.
3. Those Aged 23-38 Are More Likely to Suffer from Social Media Addiction
According to a 2019 Statista report, US citizens aged between 23 and 38 made the highest percentage of people who considered themselves addicted to social media. 37% of this age group claimed they were somewhat or entirely addicted. In comparison, 15% reported they were 100% addicted to social media, taking the total number of addicted people in this age group to a shocking 52%.
Here's a table that breaks down the results of this 2019 research:
4. Cocaine Addiction and Social Media Addiction Share Common Attributes
Dopamine, a neurotransmitter, allows us to feel motivation, satisfaction, and pleasure. However, an excess of it can lead to severe mental illnesses, such as ADHD, eating disorders such as binge eating, and even addiction and gambling problems.
It is common for us to develop an addiction to an activity that is enforced by a rush of dopamine. Consequentially, there’s been an alarming increase in the use of cocaine in recent years, despite its adverse side effects, including severe impacts on our health.
Similar to cocaine, which increases our dopamine levels, several social media activities, such as shares, retweets, likes, and comments, are known to give us a dopamine rush. As a result, social media addicts suffer from similar side effects as those addicted to cocaine.
The most common side effect that’s found in both groups of addicts is the deficiency of decision making. The study also concluded that those who suffered from an addiction to social media made poor decisions. Those who presented more risky decision-making processes had a more severe addiction to social media.
Are you shocked by the social media addiction statistics we’ve shared till now? There are many more you still need to know!
5. Teenagers Who Are on Social Media 5 Hours/Day Are 2x More Likely to Develop Symptoms of Depression
According to a 2018 study, teenagers who are on social media for 5 hours a day are more likely to show depressive symptoms than those who only use social media for one hour. Additionally, it was also highlighted that this problem was more prevalent amongst females.
Approximately 58% more females show signs of depression and other related mental illnesses than males.
In addition to depression, teens and young adults who use social media excessively can also experience the following mental and physical impacts:
Jealousy
Anxiety
Insecurity
Alienation
Dissatisfaction with life or appearance
Long-term memory problems
FOMO (fear of missing out)
Lack of ability to concentrate and focus
Learning difficulties
Materialism
Sleeping disorders
Eating disorders
Poor relationships
Unwillingness to participate in activities
Reluctancy to socialize in real life
Obesity
Low grades and lack of responsibility
6. People Aged 16-24 Spend 3 Hours and 1 Minute per Day on Social Media
According to a 2018 report, those aged between 16 and 24 spent the most time on social media, totaling 3 hours and 1 minute per day. Those aged 25 to 34 followed with 2 hours and 37 minutes spent on social media daily. Additionally, those aged between 35 and 44 spent only 33 minutes left than the 25-34 age group.
Those aged 45-54 and 55-64 spent only 1 hour 39 minutes and 1 hour 13 minutes per day, respectively, on social media. In addition to this, the Gen-Z population represents the majority of the daily social media users, according to the 2022 Statista report. Here’s a summary table of the findings:
7. Social Media Use Is linked to Marital Problems
Social media has often been linked to conflicts, jealousy, infidelity, and eventually divorce. A study was conducted to find a link between social media use, increasing divorce rates, and deteriorating marriage quality in our society.
The study concluded that the 20% increase in Facebook profiles was associated with a rise of 2.18% to 4.32% in divorce rates.
Social media addiction can have several negative impacts. Keep reading to find common signs of addiction to social media.
What Are the Signs of Addiction to Social Media?
Several telltale signs represent an addiction to social media, including feeling an urge to use social media daily, using social media during study or job hours, feeling anxious or developing a fear of missing out [FOMO] when you can’t use social media, constantly checking social media platforms to see recent activities on your profile, over-planning or over-thinking your posts on social media, and neglecting other hobbies for social media.
Let’s take a look at each of these signs and what you can do to prevent developing an addiction to social media:
1. Daily Unavoidable Urges to Use Social Media
Suppose you feel sudden urges to open your phone and laptop and log into a social media platform at any given time, regardless of the importance of the task at hand. In that case, you might be suffering from social media addiction.
An excellent way to get rid of this habit is to restrict your social media and screen time. You can simply do this by setting a timer for your time and social media and strictly adhering to the healthy time limit you’ve set for yourself.
Several social media apps, such as Facebook, have introduced an in-built option of setting a per day time limit for their users. You can also go into your social media profile’s setting to let the app or website notify you when you’ve exceeded your time limit.
2. Using Social Media during Study/Work Hours
Do you often use social media when you should be studying, working, or doing something productive? If you do, then you might be suffering from social media addiction. It is common for social media addicts to perform poorly in educational or professional capacities because they’re constantly distracted by their social media notifications.
One of the most excellent fixes for this is turning your notifications off for all social media platforms while working or studying. You can also put your phone on Do Not Disturb mode to avoid all tings and pings of your phone.
3. Developing Signs of Anxiety and FOMO
With so much information, news, and updates readily available to us in a matter of seconds, it's no secret that most social media users feel anxious and develop FOMO, which are triggered when they can’t use social media.
You can avoid developing such symptoms caused by the overuse of social media by dedicating some time of the day to socializing and connecting to your friends and family members physically. Doing so will help keep you distracted and decrease your screen time while also giving you a sense of pleasure and satisfaction.
4. Constantly Checking and Refreshing Social Media Profiles
Another significant sign of addiction to social media is the addict’s constant urge to refresh their feed or check their social media for new updates. Most of us love consuming new information, gaining knowledge, or even simply taking a five-minute break to laugh over a few memes.
You can avoid overusing social media in this way by making the use of social media a treat rather than an unhealthy habit. Set your daily goals and commit to using social media only after completing those tasks or achieving pre-specified milestones.
5. Over-Planning & Over-Thinking before Posting on Social Media
As we mentioned earlier, social media has been known to increase our dopamine levels, which leads to feelings of pleasure, satisfaction, and motivation. To ensure our experience on social media results in such feelings, we often spend a majority of our day planning and thinking about what we post on several platforms.
To avoid wasting your time thinking about social media or staring at your drafts repeatedly, you can limit the number of posts you’ll make in a day or even a week. It’ll also prove advantageous to remember that your posts' likes, comments, or shares are not life-changing.
Social media addiction can lead to users neglecting other physical hobbies and activities. Keep reading to find a solution to this common problem.
Neglecting Other Hobbies
Did you love painting, reading, exercising, or playing a sport and are you now finding it more challenging to take out the time for your hobbies because of social media? By neglecting your hobbies, you’re giving social media more power and control over your life.
It’s best to take some time out or even schedule time slots for your hobbies and avoid any social media use during that period. If you don’t have any hobbies, you should spend some time finding which activities you enjoy the most outside of using social media for entertainment.
Concluding Thoughts
We hope all these cold hard facts and solutions to common symptoms of addiction to social media have encouraged you to turn your online habits and social media use into something more positive and healthy. However, if you think your social media addiction is beyond your control, you can always seek professional help.
Humans First has been helping business owners, professionals, and employees become more productive by limiting their use of technology and social media. If you think you’re suffering from an addiction to social media, we can help. Contact us now to discuss your specific concerns and let our experts help you strike the perfect balance between the physical and digital worlds.
