One in five users admit feeling depressed seeing friends having fun in glitzy locations while they’re stuck at work
Like it or not, Facebook and other social media is damaging the nation’s mental health, a survey claims.
One in five users admits feeling depressed seeing friends having fun in glitzy locations while they are stuck at work.
And an estimated seven million adults on networks including Twitter, WhatsApp and Instagram feel inadequate seeing posts by pals displaying better lifestyles, says research by Privilege Home Insurance.
But quitting the sites is not an option as more than half say their fear of missing out on the latest gossip or event would be too much of a sacrifice.
Nine in ten users tweak images to make themselves look better or apply make-up or hair gel before taking and posting selfies.
And 10% admit feeling deflated if they fail to get a like, follow or retweet.
Yet more than half feel they must try to outdo more interesting friends with
frequent attempts at wittier comments and glam pics.
The unwritten social media etiquette is also giving users a headache. A quarter feel they have to wish a friend happy birthday on Twitter or Facebook, even if they have already said it in person. And a fifth feel unable to turn down a friend request from a colleague, even if they really dislike them.
And 60% admit checking up on or even stalking ex-lovers, old friends and workmates. One in ten has been fired or disciplined for posts and a fifth have morning-after regrets over what they share while drunk.
Privilege Home Insurance chief Dan Simson said: “People increasingly seem to be basing how they see their popularity on superficial interactions and measures such as ‘likes’.”
Twitter is minefield for celebrities
While social media can provide a powerful link between celebs and their fans but it can also be a forum for cruelty.
Caroline Flack, 36, fell foul of Twitter trolls who blitzed her with abuse after technical hitches during the live X Factor final.
She said: “Someone wouldn’t come up to you in the street and say: ‘You’re a big, fat, ugly s***’, yet they find it really easy to say online.”
One Direction star Zayn Malik, 23, quit the site in 2012 saying: “I’m sick of all the useless opinions and hate that I get daily.” He came back.
Actress Jennifer Lawrence, 25, refuses to have an account.
Kids left out if they are offline
Sophie Dishman, 21, knows first hand the pressures social media brings for young people.
The student, of Sunderland, said: “Being on social media is a norm now, you have to fit the rules, you have to conform otherwise you’re the odd one out.
"So many young people sit on social media until the early hours of the morning – if you aren’t on social media it’s considered odd. It’s simply not fair because there’s so many other pressures to deal with.”
Sophie backs The Children’s Society’s Seriously Awkward campaign, which calls for better protection for teens vulnerable to sexual exploitation.
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