The Impact of Social Media on Mental Health

Abstract

Social media has recently become part of people's daily activities; many of them spend hours each day on Messenger, Instagram, Facebook, and other popular social media. Mental health is important at every stage of life. While studies have found a correlation between increased social media usage among young adults and a rise in mental health problems in this demographic, the specific mechanisms linking social media use to these changes remain unclear. This chapter aims to investigate the relationship between social media use and the mental health of young adults. To achieve this objective, the researcher review and consolidate existing literature on the characteristics of social media, the mental health of young adults, and current theories at the social and individual levels that could help explain this relationship.