Social media addicts can make the same impaired decisions that drug users make, study states
| Updated: Jan 11, 2019, 13:50 IST
While most of you may not think that this could be possible, there is a thing such as being online too much. With the increase in technology's advances, everyone has access to the Internet and to the various apps that are available. Researchers at Michigan State University are exploring the idea that there might be more to online addiction than just joking about someone being online for too long. They conducted a study which indicates that people who use social media too much can actually display behaviours that are similar to cocaine and heroin addicts.
For the study, they asked 71 participants to rate their own social media usage. After this, they were subjected to a task wherein they had to choose from four decks of cards that were associated with gains and punishments. Their task was to maximise their winnings. “Participants are also informed that some decks are better than others and that if they want to do well, they should avoid the bad decks and choose cards from the good decks.”
The researchers found that people who were addicted to social media made extremely bad decisions like choosing the wrong deck for immediate gains even when they knew that eventually, their choices would result in losses. Whereas people who took the time to go through the deck realised which decks posed the greatest risks and avoided them. This alone can prove that social media is impacting the way our minds behave and is creating a shift that may not necessarily be good for us. So, beware and cut down on too much social media use. Stay tuned for more updates.
For the study, they asked 71 participants to rate their own social media usage. After this, they were subjected to a task wherein they had to choose from four decks of cards that were associated with gains and punishments. Their task was to maximise their winnings. “Participants are also informed that some decks are better than others and that if they want to do well, they should avoid the bad decks and choose cards from the good decks.”
The researchers found that people who were addicted to social media made extremely bad decisions like choosing the wrong deck for immediate gains even when they knew that eventually, their choices would result in losses. Whereas people who took the time to go through the deck realised which decks posed the greatest risks and avoided them. This alone can prove that social media is impacting the way our minds behave and is creating a shift that may not necessarily be good for us. So, beware and cut down on too much social media use. Stay tuned for more updates.