Social media addiction grows more complex each day for average users, companies, and influencers.
Isaac Vaghefi, PhD—an assistant professor of information systems at Baruch’s Zicklin School of Business—is tackling the issue. Through his research, he explores why people develop addictions, potential policy solutions such as phone bans in schools, and exceptions to the rules.
Vaghefi’s interest in social media addiction began as a graduate student at McGill University.
“I started looking at what makes people want to check their smartphones,” Vaghefi notes. “My most recent research shows how social media addiction can develop over time, and how it evolves into compulsion, and the role of social media companies in that.”
Vaghefi delves into what makes some individuals more susceptible to social media addiction than others.
“If people are not careful, anybody can develop and go through some sort of addiction to technology,” he says.
His recent research investigates solutions to how people can self-regulate their social media addictions. In one experiment, he interviewed 700 students and then showed them the extent of their social media addiction compared to others. With recent debates on whether phones should be banned in schools, Vaghefi believes that awareness of social media harms is key to fighting the crisis.
“I’m down for banning social media in schools,” he says. “[Social media] is kind of like how smoking was considered healthy and prestigious 40 to 50 years ago before we knew the harms. The more people talk about social media harms, the more we can work with governments to change policy.”
He admits, however, that social media has benefits for can benefit businesses and influencers.
“It’s one of the very few positive uses of social media,” he says. “If a company or person or influencers whose business is on social media, sales depend on it. But it’s not the average use of social media.” Vaghefi adds, “I’m more focused on mental health and the well-being of society. Social media use [can cause] depression and anxiety.”
Looking ahead, he hopes that through awareness, research, and policy, society can collectively mitigate the harms of social media.
— Erin Davis