How Social Media Impacts Mental Health

For LGBTQIA + individuals, especially those lacking acceptance at home or school, online communities provide an important space to find acceptance and connection with peers who share experiences or buffer against stigma and minority stress . Individuals who hold minoritized identities (e.g., racial, ethnic, gender, sexual, religious) may especially benefit from protective aspects of media, such as https://www.oprah.com/own-davidmakesman/resources_2 through connection with online communities who share their identities 11•. Youths with fewer family, school, and community resources and greater stressors may be more likely to benefit from the protective aspects of media use. Social support and close relationships are critical during the developmental period of adolescence and can protect against mental health problems . This article provides a summary of the current evidence on this topic, highlights key directions for future research, and provides evidence-based recommendations for adolescents, families, educators, clinicians, industry, and policy-makers to prevent mental health problems related to media. Over 1 billion people worldwide are affected by neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) and a similar number are affected by mental health conditions.

One of the many alternatives to address mental health stigma is through mental health awareness campaigns. But let’s try to understand how useful social media platforms are for mental health promotion. BBC radio will be joining commercial and community stations at 10.59am on Friday 14 May for the Mental Health Minute with a broadcast of a special message in support of mental health awareness. The pandemic has continued to have a huge impact on people’s mental health and to coincide with Mental Health Awareness Week (10-17 May), the BBC is curating a range of programming across TV, radio and digital to encourage conversations and provide support. Australia’s new social media age restrictions aim to protect young people online.

The bright side of social media

Through this focus, several factors have been identified that influence the effectiveness of health communications, including, the characteristics of the message (i.e., detection versus prevention), communication mode (i.e., TV, radio, print, and internet), the audience, the behavior of focus, and the nature and amount of interpersonal communication generated by the campaign. Thus, the essential role such partnerships played in the success of the 5 × 5 campaign, particularly in terms of reach, and looking forward, in terms of response. Reducing stigma and promoting help seeking can only be effective if resources are available to provide support for those who are being encouraged to ask for it. This is especially important in low-income underrepresented communities where formal services are lacking and less traditional sources of support (informal networks of care) may be more active and relevant (i.e., schools, churches, etc.).

Campaign Teardown

Effective mental health campaigns have the potential to make a significant impact on public attitudes and behaviors toward mental health. Mental health campaigns are targeted efforts to promote awareness, education, and support for mental health and well-being. This article will delve into the best practices for creating impactful mental health campaigns that make a difference in people’s lives.

A full list of campaigns, their characteristics, and their evaluation methods is included in Table 1. A quality assessment instrument was derived from a custom scale developed as part of a systematic review evaluating branded health campaigns (Evans et al., 2015). Guided by the American Psychological Association (2018), we define mental health as “a state of mind characterized by emotional well-being, good behavioral adjustment, relative freedom from anxiety and disabling symptoms, and a capacity to establish constructive relationships and cope with the ordinary demands and stresses of life.”

• Future research should expand on the present work and assess media campaigns dedicated to these different issues to complete the evaluation landscape.
• Want to spread positivity and wellness in your campaign?
• Adolescents with BDD frequently experience co-occurring conditions such as MDD, OCD, anxiety disorders, and eating disorders .
• To mitigate potential risks, experts recommend balancing screen time with real-world interactions by encouraging face-to-face communication and physical activities that support social and cognitive development.
• Social media has an immense impact on people’s mental health.

Culturally responsive content

With mindful choices, social media can become a tool that strengthens mental health. We don’t have to completely avoid social media to protect our mental health. Avoiding social media altogether may reduce things like stress, depression, and anxiety, but it may also limit our opportunities for meaningful connections. When it comes to social media use and mental health, it’s less about the platform and more about how we choose to use it. If the fear of missing out leads to constantly checking status updates, notifications, and posts, social media use can quickly become detrimental to both physical and mental health.