Besides, other research that has associated social media usage with a decline in mental health and self-esteem comes from Pantic. Pantic conducted a study of college students and found a positive correlation between low mood and time spent on social media (Pantic, 2014). Kraut et al support this research by concluding that social media has caused face-to-face communication and relationships to be neglected due to social networking sites. Ultimately this can lead to the individual feeling lonesome and miserable (Kraut et al). Experiencing these feelings can contribute to a decline in self-esteem as one may start to question their trust and worth.
Likewise, results from Steers, Wickham, and Acitelli's study, found that individuals who compared themselves to peers on social media experienced a decline in self-esteem. They argued that using social media to compare one’s appearance, attributes, relationships, and life, is unhealthy and therefore detrimental to one’s mental state. They added that those with already low self-esteem tended to feel significantly worse after using comparison as an engagement tool on social media (Steers, Wickham, and Acitelli, 2014).
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A study conducted by Moreno et al in 2011, concluded that over twenty percent of school or university pupils display feelings of mental health disorders such as depression, through written comments on social media. Researchers added that over a quarter of the users made references to depression. They suggested that individuals who used Facebook often, reported more depressive symptoms than those who don’t use Facebook as much (Moreno et al, 2011). Experiencing depressive symptoms tends to have a damaging effect on one’s self-esteem.
Additionally, to support the notion that social media can negatively affect one’s self-esteem, Pantic conducted a study using adolescents. Research suggested that users perceived that their peers were living a better-off life than their own (Pantic, 2014). This negative mindset may suggest that the users could be predisposed to unhealthy behaviors and thinking patterns and therefore, social media can play a part in negatively affecting one’s mental health and self-esteem. Those who continuously evaluate themselves, compare their lives to online peers, and unhealthily perceive they have an unsuccessful life as opposed to other users, can cause one to feel envious and resentful. These unhealthy ways of thinking can have a detrimental and damaging effect to one’s self-esteem.
Additional research from Chen and Lee was concerned with 2 specific factors that indicate a correlation between Facebook usage and psychological harm. These factors are excess communication and self-esteem. Facebook causes an excess of communication as it is estimated that over two hundred million photos are uploaded every day with the ‘like’ feature being used over two billion times per day. This indicates that social media sites such as Facebook, operate on a continuous content cycle, which can, therefore, result in excess communication known as a ‘communication overload’. Previous evidence has suggested that more time on Facebook correlates to a decrease in self-esteem. From this, the researchers found that Facebook activity is an indirect predictor of psychological harm due to excess communication which ultimately reduces self-esteem (Chen and Lee, 2013).
Another area of social media that puts an individual’s self-esteem at risk is cyberbullying. Cyberbullying is forms of bullying that take place online, such as social media or online messaging (Bullying UK, 2020). This form of bullying can include the spread of online pressure, rumors, negative images being posted without consent, and heckling. Cyberbullying can have serious psychological effects on its victims and cause mental health disorders such as depression and anxiety (Moreno and Kolb, 2012). These mental health disorders are often associated with having low self-esteem.
However, as with all research, it is worth mentioning that some studies have found no significant findings on the link between Facebook and low self-esteem. However, these studies should be evaluated carefully due to the small duration of the experiment. One study over a week, found that social media sites can increase self-esteem especially when they receive positive comments and likes from other users (Gonzalez and Hancock, 2011). However, this can be argued that the beneficial effects may be short-lived before one starts to developed competitive and jealous behavioral traits which can damage one’s self-esteem. The researchers also concluded that self-presentation online can positively increase the way one thinks of themselves. Social media allows the user to post content that mirrors a ‘perfect life’. This can lead to positive feelings in the short term, however, over time, these feelings often turn negative and cause psychological harm as the user will have to keep up the image they are portraying without comparing their ideal image to other people, which can be difficult for some.
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