Study says Facebook use could lead to depression

Have you been feeling sad lately?

A new study says you should get off Facebook.

For college students, Facebook is a usually a constant.

It allows users to know what parties their ex-boyfriends or ex-girlfriends are going to, see their eighth-grade cousin’s new braces and stalk their high school nemeses
gallivanting through the hills of Switzerland — all in fewer than five minutes. 
 
The nature of the News Feed lets users see everyone’s funniest or prettiest photos via the number of likes a post receives.     

But is this surplus of smiling faces making us sad?

A study published in the journal of Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking found that the more time individuals spent on Facebook, the less happy they were.

Questionnaires were distributed to approximately 425 undergraduate students during class times at the university, asking about their Facebook habits — how many “friends” they have, how long they’ve been users and how often they check their pages.

The survey also asked how much they agreed or disagreed with statements such as “Life is fair” or “Many of my friends have a better life than me.”  

After an analysis controlling for race, gender, religious beliefs and whether the participants were in a relationship, it was determined that those who have used Facebook longer and more often agreed that others were happier and had better lives and agreed that life is less fair.  

The study concluded that people who spend less time on Facebook and more time with friends in real life are less likely to be unhappy.

“When my friends from other schools go visit each other, I get jealous that I can’t be there, too, since I go to school far away from them,” sophomore Kate Sullivan said.
Some students said they felt differently.

“I feel that Facebook has absolutely no effect on my happiness,” psychology student and IU sophomore Michael Kagan said. “I think they’re completely independent of each other.”

He said relationships you have with a girlfriend, boyfriend or best friend are what provide happiness, not the small amusement you can get from someone “liking” a comment on Facebook.  

This is not the first time a study analyzing the effects of Facebook on adolescents and young adults’ happiness has been conducted.

Last year, the journal of Cyberpscyhology, Behavior and Social Networking published a study about the effects of a need for popularity on social network site use.

The American Academy of Pediatrics also published a study that discussed a potential link between intense online use and developing depression called “Facebook Depression.” 

“On Facebook, everyone’s life seems perfect and fun,” sophomore Elise
Gelwicks said. “Deleting my Facebook helped me get away from that and to get away from the virtual reality of my friends.”