The Internet Paradox

In the early stages of social media, scholars were already noticing a strange phenomenon they dubbed the “Internet paradox”. This phenomenon was the defined by the ease and opportunity rewarded by the Internet to connect with others and the growing lack of actual human contact. In other words is the Internet (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.) actually making us lonelier? There seems to be an abundant amount of research claiming that this is in fact true. A study conducted by AARP in 2010 found that 35 percent of adults older than 45 were chronically lonely compared to only 20 percent in 2000. In 1985, people had 2.94 confidants and that number decreased significantly to 2.04 confidants in 2004.

Using sites such as Facebook or Twitter causes disconnect and envy through social comparison when used poorly. A student interviewed for a Tufts Daily article discussing the effects social media has on happiness talked about Facebook as a tool. He said, “You can use it well, you can use it poorly, you can use it productively or you can waste time on it.”  Basically, it isn’t necessarily Facebook’s fault if you are lonely. When used well, social media was found to have positive mood changes when direct participation occurred through messages, wall posts, or likes.

Now I’m going to ask this question: how do I use Facebook? I think I use Facebook in a beneficial way. Yes there are times when I do blindly browse my news feed “liking” something here or there, sometimes commenting on an interesting status, most of the time not. However, I also use the message application quite a bit to set up friend hang outs, or to maintain relationships with others as I go back and forth from college. Just today my friends from Allentown and I are planning a time to meet for lunch sometime next week to catch up before we trudge back to Bloomsburg in three weeks.

So it seems that Moira Burke’s observation may be the truest of them all: the effect Facebook and other social media has on you depends entirely on how choose to use those sites.