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WHAT WE THINK

Do social media affect the quality of life of elderly people?

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To have a good quality of life, an elderly person should be living a Healthy Ageing.  World Health Organization defines Healthy Ageing “as the process of developing and maintaining the functional ability that enables wellbeing in older age”. And to maintain the functional ability means to be able to be and do what they have reason to value (WHO, 2019).

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One of the core elements to have a Healthy Ageing is maintaining social relationships. Thus, social media are very useful tools, especially for those who do not have the opportunity to be always socially active through face-to-face communication. The older generation can be in contact with their loved ones by using online texting through social media, like Facebook, or engage in social contact with other elders by joining discussion forums. According to a study conducted in the UK and Italy, training older people to use social media improves cognitive capacity, increases a sense of self-competence and could have a beneficial overall impact on mental health and physical well-being (Morris, 2014). Hence creating a chance of improvement not only of their psychological condition, but also of their physical wellness.

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While research indicates that social media improve seniors’ quality of life, there are still some negative aspects. For instance, older adults who spend too much time on social media and choose those over in-person contact or even refuse to go out, tend to isolate themselves. Although the use of social platforms helps to stay in touch with other people, it should not replace the regular physical presence of humans, which is crucial to keep away loneliness. Another common concern is depression. Researchers at the University of Missouri have found that Facebook use can lead to symptoms of depression if the social networking site triggers feelings of envy among its users (Missouri, 2015). Seniors can take advantage of social media to connect with people, and in this case, there is no risk of depression increase. However, if they use those only to see what is happening in their friends’ lives, while comparing them to their own living, they may experience symptoms of depression.

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It is of common knowledge that we humans are social animals, which means that our wellbeing will also depend on our social life. I believe that social media have the potential to improve the quality of life of seniors, nevertheless it is important to teach them media literacy in order to reduce the risks of negative effects.

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by Anhelina Stoyka

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Image by William Iven
Image by Gervyn Louis

How do social media affect children’s behaviour?

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Social media have become a significant part of children’s lives. There are many different purposes for which social media can be used by youngsters, such as staying in touch with friends and family, making school-related researches and self-expressing themselves. Even though all those activities might seem to have positive effects on children, there are also various risks of having negative consequences in their behaviour.

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Nowadays having technical skills is indispensable in this digital world. The use of technologies can be a good way to motivate youngsters to study and concentrate, creating a more diverse learning time in schools. Social media provide the possibility of connecting with classmates and discuss homework or group projects, which may develop their ability to work as team towards a common purpose, and to create bonds with their peers. In addition, social media use can also be beneficial for adolescents’ (10-14 years old) psychological development. According to a longitudinal study by (Vossen & Valkenburg, 2016), “(…) adolescents who more frequently use social media, improved their ability to share and understand the feeling of others over time.” and “Overall, the findings of this study suggest that, (..), social media use can actually have a beneficial influence on empathy.”

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A more popular opinion about the impact of the social media on children is that they can cause more harm, as children are considered a vulnerable audience. While improvements in quality and availability of technology means young people often hold a lot of expert knowledge, they do not all have the same levels of media literacy (Swist, Collin, & McCormack, 2015). Due to this, youngsters can be exposed to widespread inappropriate content (like violent or sexual), which can shape their minds in a wrong manner, leading to disruptive and aggressive behaviour, and influencing their relationships with their peers and families. Another drawback is the addiction it may cause. Children can spend hours every day checking notifications, liking posts and watching videos, making it a habit and forgetting about everything else. This will indeed interfere with their routine and will result in worse grades, lack of motivation and less physical activity, thus leading to mood changes, anti-social behaviour and isolation.

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Social media are a valuable instrument and the result of their use can be actually rewarding when it comes to school work. Despite this fact, it is important to be aware of the threats children might be exposed to, and particularly of the possible detrimental effects on their behaviour.

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by Anhelina Stoyka

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Image by stem.T4L
Image by Tim Gouw
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