Facebook Causing Depression
March 30th, 2011 | by Jen |Add ”Facebook depression” to potential harms linked with social media, an influential doctors’ group warns, referring to a condition it says may affect troubled teens who obsess over the online site.
Researchers disagree on whether it is simply an extension of depression that some children feel in other circumstances, or a distinct condition linked with using the online site.
But there are unique aspects of Facebook that can make it a particularly tough social landscape to navigate for youngsters already dealing with poor self-esteem, says Gwenn O’Keeffe, a Boston paediatrician and lead author of new American Academy of Paediatrics social media guidelines.
With in-your-face friends’ tallies, status updates and photos of happy-looking people, Facebook pages can make some youngsters feel even worse if they think they don’t measure up.
It can be more painful than sitting alone in a crowded school cafeteria or other real-life encounters that can make children feel down, Dr O’Keeffe says, because Facebook provides a skewed view of what is really going on.
The guidelines urge paediatricians to encourage parents to talk with their youngsters about online use and to be aware of Facebook depression, cyber bullying, sexting and other online risks. They were published online on Monday in Paediatrics.