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EFFECT OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON

HUMAN BEHAVIOR AND LIFESTYLE

PROJECT REPORT

Submitted
In
English

By Namami Chouhan

With
Ms. PARUL SACHDEVA
As Guide

Department of English
Sri Sathya Sai Vidya Vihar, Indore
2022-23
 Sri Sathya Sai Vidya Vihar, Indore
Department of English

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the report entitled

“EFFECT OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON HUMAN BEHAVIOR AND
LIFESTYLE” is a satisfactory account of project
work based on the syllabus carried out by
Mr./Ms.Namami Chouhan. It may be accepted
as a partial fulfillment of the internal
assessment.

External Examiner Project guide

Principal
About the video
The video I’ve taken inspiration from to
perform the given project is a TedTalk by
Armin Hamrah on how social media takes away
our humanness. The link is given below:
Here Armin talk about how social media
since the very beginning has affected the
lives of humans and untangles the
connection between social media and
dehumanization.Armin guides everybody
into how social media works and how it
actually damages one from the inside, he
briefs everybody about the disadvantages of
social media and also encourages the people
to leave this unrealistic world of social media
through very simple steps.

How social media takes away our humanness | Armin Hamra…

GOALS

● Understand what social media exactly is and its

functioning

● To attain a better understanding as to why people

keep coming back to social media

● To learn the root cause of social media addiction

● Know the reason behind the spoiled minds of teens

and children

● To learn the advantages of social media

● Understand the misuse of social media and

determine not only mental but physical illeffects of
social media

● How to overcome social media addiction

ENGLISH PROJECT

HOW SOCIAL MEDIA AFFECTS

HUMAN BEHAVIOR
REPORT BY NAMAMI CHOUHAN

Introduction
Social media is a tool which has been on fire ever since it’s released on the
online platforms due to its user friendly features and despite having unique
advantages it has several disadvantages due to which there have been observed
numerous changes in human behavior amongst which the youth is the biggest
victim of all time.
The good and the bad
Social media as the definition says is a computer based technology that facilitates the
sharing of ideas, opinions and information. With 1.95 billion daily active users on
Facebook and Instagram combined, it’s not outrageous to say that we’ve reached the
peak of social media. On the other hand as the pendulum begins to swing the other
way, reports continue to surface on the link between social media and feelings of
loneliness, depression, jealousy and anxiety. The two things that attract one to social
media repeatedly is persuasive technology and design which are solely benefitting the
creators of such apps. Which is quite ironically us, WE are the creators of social media
and how it brings people back into this never ending loop, reduces to three primary
factors: motivation, ability and triggers. The motivator is social acceptance and FOMO
(fear of missing out), Ability includes the easy user interface and how everything is
easily available and triggers include the recommendations and the constant urge to
have a look at other people’s posts and the amount of “likes” one has received. But
when some people don’t get the attention through “likes” and “views” or get
“cyberbullied” (internet bullying) they feel dejected and miserable which results in a
lower self esteem, depression and in some extreme cases it can even lead to suicide.,
social media has taken over humanity in such a way that is has taken away our
humanness , here humanness refers to natural human behavior and fundamental
qualities like empathy, kindness, sympathy etc, Social media these days has not only
changed our habits and lifestyle but also has changed who we are, it has ruined
people’s mental health and wellbeing. The most active users of social media today are
of the age-group 18-29 and recent surveys indicate social media usage is particularly
high for people in their late teens and early 20s, a population that spends about six
hours a day texting online or using social media . But as the access widens to even the
lower age groups it is slowly ruining the delicate minds of children as well. And the
way it messes with these young minds is (scientifically speaking) by taking the
advantage of the less mature prefrontal cortex in teens and young adults, the area of
the brain that regulates emotional responses to social rewards. Due to the excessive
time spent on such sites it hampers a child’s ability to interact formally with others.
Research studies note the connection between use of social media and its undesirable
outcomes that increase incidence of anxiety, stress, depression, body image concerns,
and loneliness in teens and young adults and as for the children they are being exposed
to the dark web, pornographic material and the online predators and social media
platforms often lure the younger ones into wrong deeds like illicit payments and even
lead to assaults in serious cases. Social media also glorifies the consumption of alcohol,
illicit substances and gun culture which again lures and attracts the younger audience,
they can also get access to other informations which would not do them any good, all
of this is decreasing their brain time and increasing their screen time, social media
has also made us insensitive and this often occurs in the form of blackmailing and
cyberbullying and in one such case it made a 13 year old epileptic girl take her own life
because she was being cyberbullied about her suffering, such cases instead of
decreasing are increasing day by day. On social media people often show how perfect
their lives are and often show off their extravagant lifestyles which in turn affects those
who can’t afford such lifestyles again resulting in self deprecation and self harm
behavior. Health issues too are a major disbenefit of social media, Social media use can
affect users' physical health even more directly. The connection between the mind and
the gut can turn anxiety and depression into nausea, headaches, muscle tension, and
tremors along with that Research participants who used social media excessively were
found to have higher levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), a biological marker of chronic
inflammation that predicts serious illnesses, such as diabetes, certain cancers and
cardiovascular disease. Obesity, poor posture, rounded shoulders, spinal curvatures,
vertebrate disorders and even sleep deprivation are also a handful of diseases caused.
Students addicted to social media feel that their grades could be better if no social
media existed, researchers say that if one spends the day in a state of fragmented
detention to take quick glances of your phone it can permanently reduce one’s
capacity of concentration. It is ironic how the “act” of trying to be a well rounded
human by taking care of your social profile is actually dehumanizing, all the attempts
of staying in touch and being closer to the world is just distancing you even further
from the world. However It’s easy to look at these technologies as inherently bad,
however, similar to blockchain technology, its potential is huge and nowhere near
exhausted. There are scores of examples of persuasive technology built to improve our
life experience. For example, to encourage people to exercise more, remember to take
their medicine on time, improve their driving or make friends with their neighbours.
This is where brands can insert themselves and add value, as many already do. For
example Nike+, an implicitly social application that fully integrates with Facebook and
Instagram and leverages persuasive design in a positive way. Or Headspace, who fill
Facebook and Instagram newsfeeds with 10-second meditations to relieve stress and
anxiety. Another way is Limiting social media use of preteens and teens helps control
early introduction of harmful, aggressive advertising, cyberbullying, body-image
concerns, and poor self-esteem. If use can be curtailed to later teen or young
adulthood years, each individual will have a more developed sense of self. Increased
maturity in the prefrontal cortex helps younger adults have more control over their
emotions. Parents can set timers, control of apps, and time usage after 10 p.m., color
settings, and keep kids educated on the potential dangers inherent in social media use.
Reflections
This video and report helped me gain a better
knowledge on how social media functions and how
it can harm not only the minds of the bright adults
and also those of innocent children, it helped gain a
better insight on the mental as well as physical
disadvantages that excessive use of social media can
cause, but social media also taught me about how it
can help one lead a better life through many ways,
this research project taught me that everything has
a good and a bad side depending how wisely one
uses it.
Bibliography

Is Social Media Bad For Your Mental Health?: Middle

Georgia State University

Here’s How Social Media Affects Your Mental Health |

McLean Hospital

Social Media: Definition, Effects, and List of Top Apps

Is Social Media Ruining Your Life? | Security.org

Social Media Poses Risk to Humanity, Scientists Warn

How Social Media Are Ruining Our Lives | Mind Matters

https://youtu.be/1mYGawtPYVQ