Sometimes I find myself scrolling through Instagram or Twitter (or even Facebook) for hours on end. Usually I don’t think much of it…and that may be the problem. It’s not foreign to me because I’ve nearly grown up with it, but in retrospect, it’s more than a little strange that humans now spend so much time either trying to broadcast their own lives, or trying to dissect the lives of others. Social media is harmful to communication in this day and age because it decreases “real” conversation, productivity, and healthy behavior.

When offered the opportunity of talking on the phone or sending a text, most people pick text. It’s faster, more convenient, and arguably more fun. If you ask an 8 year old to pick up a phone and have a conversation with their best friend, chances are they won’t know how to, and the same goes for an average teen. Also, why would anyone take the time to actually pick up a phone and dial a number - or actually set up a face to face meeting - to talk to their friend when they can just passively shoot them a text without worrying about whether they’ll answer, or even see it, within the next hour? People choose texting over talking because of the convenience. According to Cornell University, texting encourages a false sense of closeness, and can make it harder for people to tell the difference between the “meaningful relationships we foster in the real world,” versus the “numerous casual relationships formed through social media.” The false closeness is created when people interact via social media instead of physically spending time with one another, and it can lead people to believe they are closer to their “peers” than they really are. These unfulfilling interactions can create conflict and isolation, as they allow for misunderstanding and encourage people to isolate themselves from person-to-person contact.

The majority of the population accomplishes less with social media than they could without it. I can barely write this paper because I’m thinking of taking a break to scroll through my Twitter feed for updates from my peers. In my film studies class, no one pays attention because they’re all taking “breaks” from the movie to check their social media - as if it’s more interesting than a kid seeing dead people. I see this over and over: people not paying attention to the current task at hand because they have something more important to tend to on their phone, but the content most people look at on Twitter or Instagram is chock full of worthless videos and the illusion of interesting lives. As a result of this, social media users are less focused on the task at hand and tend to not be as productive they would be without the distraction. This year, a study conducted at Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, Ga., discovered a positive correlation between students having “lower grades and weaker study habits” and people spending “more time…on Facebook.”

Some may say that social media sites can be used to further communication, and that the content is useful. It is true that the content has potential to be useful, but it is rarely used in a helpful way. Yazino, an online casino, conducted a study. They found that, even when adults are provided the opportunity to socialize, “11% of adults” choose “communicat[ing] on their devices” over face-to-face contact. Some say that it helps people stay in touch over distance with their peers, but I don’t believe this assumption to be true. My cousin, who I was close with when I was younger, lives in Washington state; although I follow her on Instagram, after 2 and a half years apart, we didn’t know a single thing about each other. Twitter has a tab called “Moments” that can be used to catch up with important information going on, but the focus is on the home feed, which most use for catching up on irrelevant fights and trends (like the “Damn Daniel” video).

Speaking of Daniel, after the video (starring a teen with exceptionally white shoes) went viral, Daniel was beaten - almost to the point of death - for his shoes. The thieves then posted the shoes to eBay, pricing them upwards of $30,000. This is just one example of how social media encourages bad behavior. It also makes it more convenient for bullies to affect people - the other night, I watched a fight unfold in the comments of an Instagram post. The label “Muslim terrorist” was thrown around, because one of the participants appeared to belong to that region.  Out of the teens who use social media, “39% [of teens]” claimed to be “the victim of cyberbullying,” but only “22% of teens who don't engage in social media activities” are victims, according to a national study by Pew Research Center.

In conclusion, as an avid user of social media, I believe it has the potential to do good things for humanity. However, the way it is being used in this day and age is not productive; it does not help us communicate as effectively as it could. If these strange behaviors (such as cyberbullying and stalking) that have developed as products of social media continues, who knows what else could happen? Social media use could lead to new extremes. The use of social media either needs to be reformed, or it needs to be stopped. Even if people decreased the amount of time they spent on social media - by, say, 10 minutes per day - the world would be a better place. Let’s start a new #trend, one that reforms humanity for the better - before it’s too late.