Impact of Instagram on Mental Health

The implications of using Instagram on mental health are significant, especially for the youth. The pressure to maintain a perfect image and gain social attention can lead to negative impacts on mental health, including anxiety, depression, and self-objectification. The study highlights the need for awareness and education on the potential negative impacts of social media on mental health.

Running head: IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
Impact of Instagram on Mental Health
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
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1IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
Introduction
Launched in October 2010, Instagram is a video and photo sharing application that has
been owned by Facebook since 2012. This application has become a very important component
and part of the lives of millions of people all across the world that uses this application. The
majority of the people who use this application are of the age group of teenagers. More than
providing connectivity and bringing people across different countries together, this application is
used for obtaining information about the whereabouts of people using the application. The
features of filters, tags and sharing to the preferred group of people add to the increased favor
and use of this application. Further, being up to date with the new applications is very important
and Instagram provides another such platform to showcase the lifestyle of people. Like any other
social media application, Instagram creates an impact on the mental health of people and this
paper investigates the very same effect. This paper tries to study the impacts of Instagram usage
on the mental health of the users as well as their online and offline behaviors.
Aspect of media investigated/Social group media use interested
The use of social media is now directly proportional to the lifestyle being led by the
people using the application. The users are sometimes able to review the usage of goods online
and share their views, making the usage of social media even high. However, the usage of social
media is always associated with the cost of mental illness for the users and it is reported in many
studies that majority of the users in the developed countries especially suffer from conditions of
schizophrenia, depression, spectrum disorder and bipolar disorder (Naslund et al. 2017). These
effects are studied and evaluated in details in this study. Studies also posit and assert that the
nature of friendships that are initiated online and offline vary and the lasting of friendships also
greatly varies (Lu et al. 2017). The picture that is portrayed by the posts and the follow list on

2IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
Instagram often deciphers the notion that the limits and boundaries to the level of friendship has
extended. The condition of having an inordinate number of friends online and hardly anyone to
lean back on in reality is the biggest cause of the mental illnesses mentioned above.
Research
Instagram just like other social networking sites have its own adverse impacts on the
users and especially on the young adults or teenagers who are a part of the virtual world and
continuously tends to keep up to the social image formed. The research in this project is aimed at
finding out the impacts of this social media platform on the mental health and essentially the
effect on the concept of perfection of physical appearances that is perceived by the cohort of
population using the application.
According to many studies, it has been noticed that the concepts of perfect physical
appearances and friendships have greatly changed due to the use of Instagram which in turn has
caused the impacts of depression, anxiety and trauma in most individuals. For example, it has
been found that while online majority of the users of Instagram are anxious about the number of
likes, the positive and negative comments and sometimes even the shares that they receive.
While offline on the other hand, the same users become less restless and more calm and tranquil.
Self Objectification has become very common with the advent and the increased use of
the application and patterns and trends suggest that this issue impacts women more than men.
The notion of having a properly proportioned body and living up to the expectations of the ideal
figure in society has been propelled by the usage of this application (Fardouly, Willburger and
Vartanian 2017). This in turn has led to the issues of change in beliefs and concerns in women
causing them to highly suffer from both anxiety and depression.

3IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
Studies have also asserted that Instagram usage by youth has led to increased levels of mental
illness in them because of the open options of commenting and sharing of images without
consent in certain cases (Kathryn 2014). As a matter of fact, Instagram is reported to be one of
the biggest platforms where the exposure of photos and videos has caused wide amounts of
depression and other mental illnesses.
Real life (Kim K and Amanda Lee examples)
Amanda Lee is a Canadian fitness model who has millions of followers of Instagram and
uses pictures of her fit body to earn an average amount of five hundred dollars for each post.
Kim K is another such celebrity who has over 10 million followers on Instagram and has earned
a lot by posting the pictures of her perfect body on Instagram. The real life examples of these
two celebrities on Instagram is very important because they are relevant to this study as they help
in portraying the basic reason for the increased usage of Instagram from the tangent of having
and earning love and respect for their perfect figures. Likewise, millions of young girls, women
and even men around the world attempt to achieve such perfect bodies and sometimes even try
earning out of such posts by making their profiles public. However, in majority of cases these
attempts fail causing huge mental implications and negative impacts.
Methodology
The method of data collection for this project used in this case is the primary collection of
data in which data will be collected through the use of interviews and surveys. The cohort of
individuals interviewed will consist of people who use Instagram on a daily or at least a weekly
basis. Apart from analysis of this data collected, the use of textual and content analysis will also
be implied for literature used as secondary data for this study. The major facts that will form the

4IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
basis of the questions used for the primary survey and interview include the following enlisted
perspectives:
 The difference in the thought process of individuals using Instagram when they are online
and offline is studied and investigated
 The perspective of young adults about physical appearances and the impact of this on
their confidence
 The psychological impact of positive or negative opinions of pictures and posts shared on
Instagram on the individuals
 The correlation if any in between the use of Instagram and the mental illnesses in
teenagers including depression and anxiety
Ethical consideration
The branch and section of philosophy that determines the rules and codes of conduct and
behavior under different circumstances, form the pathway to ethical considerations in case of
research that is primary (Daniel 2012). For this study, I made sure that the participants had their
full consent in being questioned to different levels. Further, their identity was not exposed. The
data was completely used for educational purposes and strictly protected. I also made sure that
they were participating under full comfort and did not feel forced or persuaded to answer any
question asked. The sample questioned consisted of individuals in the age group 17 to 25 years
so that they are able to answer confidently bout themselves.
Results
The interview and survey are conducted on people that use and utilize the features of
Instagram frequently. A sample of three people was interviewed and the sample for the survey

5IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
consisted of around twenty people. The analysis of the responses and patterns obtained from the
interview and survey are evaluated herein.
Interview – The questions asked in the interview are enlisted as follows:
1. How old are you and what is your profession?
2. How often do you use Instagram each day, and for what reason?
3. Do you check who has liked your photos and check your comments section thoroughly?
4. Do you feel like you express your true self on Instagram, or do you feel like it is an
expression of who you want to become? If so why do you express this side?
5. Do you feel a need to live up to a certain standard on Instagram? Do you feel stressed or
anxious from doing this act?
6. Do you feel like your life is consumed by Instagram? Do you think this is a positive
and/or negative?
7. Has Instagram contributed to your boost your confidence and/or body image?
8. Has any engagement you’ve had on Instagram ever put you down or made you feel
upset? If so, what sort of engagement was it and how did it make you feel?
9. Do you ever criticize yourself or think negatively about your body when you see
someone post a photo of a body type that you desire?
10. Overall, do you think Instagram had a positive or negative effect to you? Why?
The general trend observed from the responses of the interviewees was that majority of the users
belong to the age group of the youth and they generally use and access it on a daily basis for a
period of one hour. They feel that it is the best way to connect and feel wanted and mheard as
well as gain social attention. Responses also suggested that the users are often impacted

6IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
negatively to different extents depending upon the issue of lack of attention or misuse of their
posts or pictures and sometimes even less number of followers and friends.
Sample Survey
The questions for the sample survey are attached in the Appendix of this paper. The
following graphs represent the information received and the results generated from the sample
survey.
5
8
7
Age Group of People using Instagram
Over 25
18-25
17-18
Under 16
The above graph represents the age group of individuals using Instagram and as it
noticed, majority of the users vary in the age group of 17 to 25 and this age group comprises of
the youth who are updated on a daily basis on the various social media applications.

7IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
Student High School
Student Full time Worker Other
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Profession
Profession
The above graph portrays that majority of the individuals surveyed were students and
high school students and only few of the individuals belonging to the cohort of people surveyed
were full time workers.
0-1 hour 1-3 hours 3-5 hours More than 5
hours
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
Frequency of Use
Frequency of Use

8IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
The frequency of usage of Instagram on a daily basis varies in the range of one to five
hours with the majority of people using the application for a period of around Half an hour to
one hour.
Connecting with others
Posting cool photos
Viewing other Influencers
Work
Self Promotion
Other
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Reason for Using Instagram
Reason for Using Instagram
The reasons for using Instagram as a social media application are portrayed in the graph
with majority of the users using the application for purposes of connecting with others, posting
cool pictures, promoting one self and viewing others profiles and posts as an influence with a
very small number of people using the application for their professional work.

9IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
Conveyence of different self on Instagram
Yes
No
As is portrayed in the graph above, majority of users on Instagram use the platform for
showcasing an impression or image of oneself that varies widely from their real selves.
Level of concern about comments and
opinions
Yes
No

10IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
The above graph portrays the portion of individuals surveyed who care about the reviews
and opinions of their posts and pictures and as is noticed in the graphs, majority of the people
surveyed are affected and impacted by the opinions and comments.
17
3
Posting on social Media to impress people
Yes
No
This graph shows, the portion or section of people surveyed who post on Instagram to
impress other people or gain attention of others and impress about the perfection of their physical
appearances or even their lifestyles.

11IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
Yes No
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
Responses of being cyber bullied
Responses of being cyber bullied
The responses from the individuals surveyed also show that although majority of the
cohort have not been subject to scenarios of cyber bullying, a substantial portion of the
individuals have faced instances of being bullied through different ways on Instagram.
Feeling satisfied with the number of likes on
Instagram
Yes
No

12IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
The above graph portrays that majority of the individuals surveyed felt a feeling of
content or satisfaction as the number of likes on their posts increased and the other way in case
their posts were not liked or if those posts received negative comments.
Yes No
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
Criticism of self based on posts of others
Criticism of self based on posts
of others
The last graph shows the results from the last question asked that is majority of the
individuals feel that their posts should be as good as or even better than the posts of their fellow
friends on Instagram or the profiles of celebrities that they follow.
Discussion
Thus the results portray that majority of the individuals who use Instagram as a major
part of their social lives are young and are constantly in a race of proving the level of perfection
of their lifestyles. Majority of these people use the application on a daily basis in spite of being

13IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
exposed to the negative effects of bullying, lowering of self confidence and other mental
illnesses including depression.
Conclusion
Thus, to conclude, it can be asserted that the implications of using Instagram just like
other social media platforms for portraying the perfection and quality of lifestyle by the youth
are adverse and often affect the mental health and the overall quality of life of these individuals.
The individuals become prone to wrong notions of having a perfect figure or physical appearance
failing which they start losing self confidence.
Recommendations
The use of Instagram should be lowered for this age group and they should be
increasingly provided with counseling or workshops to reduce the level of depression, anxiety as
well as self doubt and self objectification.
References
Daniel, O. (2012). SocialMedia Usage in the Workplace Around the World - Developing Lami
and Practices. Business Law International, 13(2), 124-138.
Fardouly, J., Willburger, B.K. and Vartanian, L.R., 2017. Instagram use and young women’s
body image concerns and self-objectification: Testing mediational pathways. New Media &
Society, p.1461444817694499.
Kathryn, Z. (2014). Teens and Tech: What the Research Says. Young Adult Library Services,
12(2), 124-164.

14IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
Lu, D., Sang, J., Chen, Z., Xu, M. and Mei, T., 2017. Who Are Your “Real” Friends: Analyzing
and Distinguishing Between Offline and Online Friendships From Social Multimedia Data. IEEE
Transactions on Multimedia, 19(6), pp.1299-1313.
Naslund, J.A., Aschbrenner, K.A., McHugo, G.J., Unützer, J., Marsch, L.A. and Bartels, S.J.,
2017. Exploring opportunities to support mental health care using social media: A survey of
social media users with mental illness. Early intervention in psychiatry.
Appendix A: Survey questions (accessible at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/L28Z875)
1. What is your age?
a. Over 25
b. 18-25
c. 17-18
d. Under 16 (If you are under 16, please exit the survey.)
2. What is your profession?
a. Student
b. High school student
c. Full-time worker
d. Other (please specify)
3. How often do you use Instagram each day?
a. 0-1 hour
b. 1-3 hours
c. 3-5 hours
d. 5+ hours

15IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
4. What is your primary reason for using Instagram?
a. Connecting with others
b. Posting cool photos
c. Viewing other influencers
d. Work
e. Self-promotion
f. Other (please specify)
5. Do you convey a different self on Instagram?
a. Yes
b. No
6. Do you care about how many people like or view your posts / pictures?
a. Yes
b. No
7. Do you post on social media just to impress people?
a. Yes
b. No
8. Have you been cyberbullied in any way (e.g. hate comments, direct messages)?
a. Yes
b. No
9. Do you feel confident or popular when you get more likes on a content you post?
a. Yes
b. No

16IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM ON MENTAL HEALTH
10. Do you criticize yourself or think negatively about your body when you see someone post
a photo of a body type that you desire?
a. Yes
b. No