A psychologist, Dr
Rose Chukwuma, has said that the frequent use of social media platforms seems to decrease the social skills of most users.
Chukwuma, in an interview with newsmen in Abuja, said it had been observed that frequent use of social media had an effect on its users’ communication skills and mental wellbeing.
The Tide reports that social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and others, have created a forum for people to stay in touch with friends and family, and share ideas.
These platforms are also beneficial to various organisations which use them to attain feedback on situations, share global information and news.
Organisations advertise products and services and obtain vital details needed for development on these platforms.
The use of social-media platforms has become a lifestyle among youths as they dedicate their time to making friends, sharing personal moments and monitoring the lifestyle of their favourite celebrities on the platforms.
“The biggest issue, however, is that social skills especially communication among youths has fallen drastically.
“Social skills are low among young people and you can see it when they try to start and maintain a conversation with someone they do not know.
“Productivity in the work places has also been affected because these people struggle to have a face-to-face discussion with their colleagues.
“Even the simple objective of a young man walking up to a lady to make her a friend is a big problem because they lack the tools for face-to-face communication.
“It is sad to see that our youths can only function through a screen and are beginning to act like emotionless robots,’’ Chukwuma said.
The psychologist stressed that the platforms like Instagram, which engaged its users through sharing of videos and pictures, also gave room for unhealthy lifestyle competition.
She said users were judged by how many likes they got on a post and some other criteria, which definitely affected people’s self-confidence.
“In the last seven years, I have observed an increase in the number of youths who suffer from depression and narcissistic tendencies.
“I have also come to realise that the continuous use of social media by young ones, who are at a sensitive and confusing stage of their lives tends to become addictive.
“Furthermore, the cyberspace provides freedom to try out new things that are in most cases disapproved of by their parents,’’ Chukwuma added.
According to the psychologist, anyone who was a frequent social media user will notice how drugs and alcohol have been glamorised and the rise in cyber-bullying among young adults and teenagers.
She said the rise in children from stable homes getting involved in illegal situations could also be blamed on social media.
“It has also become a platform that has created unrealistic expectations and has encouraged youths to create a false or fake life to attract attention from friends or people they want to be friends with.
“This is causing an increase in depression as individuals continuously try to impress their followers and they realise they are not being appreciated for who they truly are.’’
Chukwuma noted that in social media environment, youths have a diminished sensitivity to emotional indications.
She said due to social media addiction, youths became unable to properly comprehend the feelings of people around them and unable to express their own emotions properly.
“That is why we see many youths lashing out unnecessarily, getting angry over little things, fighting or arguing over petty issues and we, the adults, interpret it as the child just being spoilt,’’ the psychologist said.