As we all know, frequently scrolling through social media on a daily basis has become an unavoidable trait amongst university students. However, many people are unaware of how detrimental these excessive habits can be, not only on overall student life and mental wellness, but also on the less focused on areas of academic and social performance.
Although picking up your phone consistently can be very tempting, it is important to understand the ways in which this habit can impact you more than you think:
Impact on cognitive decline
A constant reliance on social media platforms throughout the day can have quite damaging effects on a student’s overall cognitive functioning. This can range from frequent brain fog and a decreased ability to think for yourself without technology, on top of constant distractions from your studies due to the internal and external impacts from your phone.
The issue of ‘brain rot’ is also an increasing problem, which occurs due to spending too much time online, and can impact your cognition and working memory throughout university, which can worsen and have a negative impact when you go into a real job after graduating.
Impact on in-person social skills
If you socialise with people more through online messaging than in-person, you might not be aware of how this may be silently offsetting your direct social skills. Getting yourself in the habit of replacing face-to-face communications with chats over social platforms can decrease your ability to interpret emotions and social cues, many experts have found.
Not only does the lack of visible social cues impact the way you interpret a message, but the delayed reactions between responses may begin impacting your ability to think quickly in a real conversation if you engage in them less.
Impact on mental health
It is widely known about the negative impacts that social media can have on anyone’s mental health, from increased anxiety and insecurities to more serious issues like depression. However, there are many concerns amidst how your everyday thinking can be impacted in quieter ways also, where many students may face decreases in energy levels or a lack of motivation, which can lead to issues of too much inactivity or isolation which can worsen these mental impacts as well as physically.
If you have noticed that you struggle with these issues and have high social media usage levels, it is important that you consider disciplining yourself through reducing your habits, and finding a balance between your work and personal time to prevent it from putting intense pressures on your student life.
Feature Image Credit: Bastian Riccardi via Pexels
Third year journalism student at Stirling University
