research proposal

For my research I have chosen to write about the effects of social media on mental health. Every year social media becomes a bigger part of our lives and slowly ruins our mental health. People believe that if they do not look like everyone else on social media or have a lot of followers or likes they are not important or are not good enough. With my research I want to show how the growing of social media is lowering our self-esteem, creating depression, and creating anxiety in the users of social media. As the social standard leans toward the super buff guys and the super models and the extremely rich, people start to believe that if they do not look like those who are famous they are not worth enough and their self-esteem falls. Social platforms also create anxiety in the people who are posting. They are worried that if they post something online and don’t get enough likes they will be seen as lame, or even start spending their money to get more likes and followers. This constant worry of not having enough likes, worrying about getting likes and comments, and worrying about posting something someone will not like, creates an obscene amount of pressure on a person creating anxiety and the start of depression. It also creates a constant need of having to check their phones and social accounts. People get anxious when they don’t have their phones, or cannot check what is going on with the rest of the world. They rely on their phones for communication, for checking in on their so-called friends, and for constant reassurance that they are worth something in life. With my research I want to prove that social media is really doing this to the society. It is creating mental health problems for those using it and is creating an addiction to the platforms.