Published 12/15/23
Adults and students at Warren Central have found the internet to have very negative effects, especially as temperatures begin to drop.
The cold winters can lead to a sluggish feeling, which means more time in the house consumed by social media. While some adults and children may not feel like doing anything, they believe watching social media users enjoy the holidays while feeling such incapability can be mentally exhausting.
According to research and reporting from UC Davis Health and ABC News, the overuse of social media has a huge effect on the likelihood of getting Seasonal Affective Disorder, also known as SAD.
Teachers have even seen the internet cause a lack of performance in classes.
“I believe it has a negative effect because it causes inaccurate information to spread,” English teacher Ann Kitchen said.
The Internet does not always have trustworthy sources, and when people do not do further research they can acquire inaccurate information. This can cause students’ grades to drop significantly due to them using false information.
“They don’t often get the full picture,” Kitchen said.
In addition to a decrease in performance is the deterioration of mental health. People on the internet, regardless of if it’s Instagram or even blogs, are allowed to say whatever they want, however they want.
“We should all pay close attention to what we do,” sophomore Alyssa Cobb said.
The internet does have ways to ignore mean comments and false information. These range from fact checking to even hiding certain content.
“There are many solutions to resolving internet bullying,” sophomore Kelsey Wade said. “There is always a way to block people and even private your accounts.”
Although blocking does not always work because people can always create new accounts, privating an account really works. It allows users to monitor who is allowed to comment or even interact with them and their content.
“Whenever I private my account, only manually accepted accounts are able to view my posts,” Cobb said.
Even if an individual is not a victim of the spread of misinformation and cruelty on the internet, they can still find ways to help those who are. They can block or report someone who uses the internet as a way to target the innocent.
“Do what you think is right because you may regret it if you don’t,” Cobb said.
Undoubtedly it is not anybody’s responsibility to fix people’s problems, but many find that helping others does not only help their issue but can also help to improve their mood throughout the day.
“Making others happy really makes me feel good,” Cobb said.
Despite the negative effects of social media, many students still see it in a positive light. When used responsibly, social media can be a great mood booster.
“There are many people on TikTok and Instagram that motivate me when I’m feeling down,” sophomore Da’mya Brown said.
According to Kitchen, people should choose to be more responsible for what they share on the internet and how much they trust certain sources. The same way being nice to one person can change someone's day is the same way just one simple mishap can cause a huge change ranging from a person’s school life and their life at home.
“It is up to us individually to monitor ourselves,” Kitchen said.