Social Media in the Contemporary Society: An Essay on Its Effects

This essay examines the multifaceted impact of social media on contemporary society. It delves into both the positive and negative aspects of social media use, highlighting its role in social interaction, information dissemination, and bridging gaps between employers and employees. The essay explores the negative consequences of social media, such as addiction, personality disorders, and the misuse of platforms by influential figures like celebrities and politicians. The author provides real-world examples, including the impact of President Trump's tweets on a student's emotional state and a case of a child developing ADHD due to excessive social media use. The essay also acknowledges the benefits of social media, such as improved educational discussions among students. The conclusion emphasizes the need for regulated social media use to mitigate its negative effects and promote responsible engagement.

Running Head: THE USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN THE CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY
The use of social media in the contemporary society
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation

THE USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN THE CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY 2
The use of social media in the contemporary society
Social media sites such as Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest and
others are generally used for social interaction. They are also used as platforms for access
of information and news, both locally and globally. Since 1997, social media has garnered
great following from people (especially the youth) from across the globe (Fuchs, 2015). The
evolvement of social media has changed its positive intent to a destructive form that has
created controversy (Garimella, Morales, Gionis and Mathioudakis, 2018). Extensive
evidence reveals that misuse of social media sites may have such negative effects as
addiction and personality disorders (Garimella, Morales, Gionis and Mathioudakis, 2018).
Therefore, the use of social media brings about destruction due to the negative effects
portrayed in the behavior of many users globally. In this essay, social media effects such as
misuse by politicians and celebrities as well as social media addiction will be discussed.
When misused by celebrities and politicians, social media may have detrimental effects.
The misuse may be in terms of dressing or how they deal with criticism. When they behave in a
manner that is ethically wrong, they may mislead a large number of people who look up to them
as role models (Diehl, Weeks and Gil de Zuniga, 2016). In 2017, President Donald Trump
posted a tweet that was a clear insult to human dignity. Personally, as a student in grade seven
then at a local school, I was negatively affected by his statement as I felt unimportant, upset and
too embarrassed to participate in national debate contests in his presence. This proves how the
misuse of social media by influential persons can cause mental and emotional havoc.
Excessive use of social media also known as addiction is another reason why social
media use is destructive. Several studies have shown that social media addiction may lead to
significant deterioration of an individual’s normal brain functioning over time. This in turn leads

THE USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN THE CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY 3
to occurrence of personality disorders that cause a break in relationships (Van Den Eijnden,
Lemmens and Valkenburg, 2016). In March 2019, a hospital in Texas reported a case of a ten-
year-old boy developing ADHD due to prolonged social media use. It can therefore be concluded
that social media may have negative effects.
Even though social media use has proven to be destructive, credible sources say that
social media use can be beneficial when used wisely. For instance, social media use improves
human interactions. Some studies show that 59% of students who have internet access report that
they use social media to discuss educational work, which lead to improvement in their academic
performances (Fuchs, 2015). Additionally, social media has helped to bridge the gap between
employers and employees (Diehl, Weeks and Gil de Zuniga, 2016). This indicates its benefits
when used wisely.
In conclusion, there are several ways in which use of social media may have negative
effects in the modern society. These effects include misuse by influence people as well as social
media addiction. Consequently, it is wise that the use of social media be regulated in a manner
that reduces the negative effects.

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References
Diehl, T., Weeks, B. E., & Gil de Zuniga, H. (2016). Political persuasion on social media:
Tracing direct and indirect effects of news use and social interaction. new media &
society, 18(9), 1875-1895.
Fuchs, C. (2015). Culture and economy in the age of social media. Routledge.
Garimella, K., Morales, G. D. F., Gionis, A., & Mathioudakis, M. (2018). Quantifying
controversy on social media. ACM Transactions on Social Computing, 1(1), 1-27.
Van Den Eijnden, R. J., Lemmens, J. S., & Valkenburg, P. M. (2016). The social media disorder
scale. Computers in Human Behavior, 61, 478-487.