In Maryland, there are more than 2,363,000 Facebook users, which, according to a new study, means that more than two million people in Maryland are more likely to experience depressive symptoms.
Previous research has linked the social network to depression, low self-esteem, jealousy, and other undesirable mental health consequences, but a new study in the Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology has discovered the reason Facebook has such a negative impact on people’s mental health. According to the study from University of Houston, it’s because Facebook causes “social comparison,” a psychological phenomenon in which people compare their most humdrum moments with the highlights of friends’ lives, such as vacation pictures and new career announcements.
“One danger is that Facebook often gives us information about our friends that we are not normally privy to, which gives us even more opportunities to socially compare,” said lead researcher Mai-Ly Steers. “You can’t really control the impulse to compare because you never know what your friends are going to post. In addition, most of our Facebook friends tend to post about the good things that occur in their lives, while leaving out the bad. If we’re comparing ourselves to our friends’ ‘highlight reels,’ this may lead us to think their lives are better than they actually are and conversely, make us feel worse about our own lives.”
Researchers surveyed participants about their Facebook usage, how likely they were to make social comparisons, and how often they experienced depressive symptoms. They found that people who used Facebook tended to suffer from depressive symptoms more, but social comparison was a mediating factor only for men.
Researchers also noted that Facebook itself does not cause depression.
“It doesn’t mean Facebook causes depression, but that depressed feelings and lots of time on Facebook and comparing oneself to others tend to go hand in hand,” said Steers.
In the United States, there are some 18.8 million adults who have some form of depression. Unfortunately, although 60-80% of cases can be effectively treated, about 80% of depressed individuals refuse to seek out professional help.
Although the study did not find that Facebook causes depression, it certainly showed that changing one’s attitude towards Facebook could help people overcome depression, a good first step for those who won’t get help.