Barretto, Jose Alberto Christopher D.

14-0235

T/F 4:30 pm – 6:00 pm

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Social media has become a relatively great part of our daily lives. It has become a

habit of most people, especially teenagers, to stay updated on their social media accounts.

A lot of people find out about news by simply checking the Social Media. What is social

media? Ivy Wigmore stated that “Social media is the collective of online communications

channels dedicated to community-based input, interaction, content-sharing and

collaboration” (Wigmore, 2016).

“Social media is the future of communication, a countless array of internet based

tools and platforms that increase and enhance the sharing of information. This

new form of media makes the transfer of text, photos, audio, video, and

information in general increasingly fluid among internet users. Social Media has

relevance not only for regular internet users, but business as well” (“Social Media

Defined”, 2014).

Social media also has a lot of different platforms wherein people can share their

experiences in their daily lives. These experiences can be shared through posting

different kinds of media, may it be through photos, videos, etc. Facebook, Instagram,

Twitter and Snapchat are platforms of social media that make these experiences possible

to be shared throughout the internet. “These platforms have created an online community
where people can share their information, regardless of how much or how little they want

it to be” (“Social Media Defined”, 2014).

The use of social media has become relevant nowadays. There are also different

kinds of social media that have come to the reach of people using these platforms.

Websites and applications that are dedicated to Social Networks, Bookmarking sites,

Social News, Media Sharing, Microblogging and Blog Comments and Forums are among

these types of Social Media. However, among these types of Social Media, Social

Networking is the most relevant for this study because of its interactive nature that

eventually affects the individual’s state of mind. Tim Grahl said that,

“Social Networks are Services that allow you to connect with other people of

similar interests and background. Usually they consist of a profile, various ways

to interact with other users, ability to set up groups, etc. The most popular are

Facebook and LinkedIn” (Grahl, 2016).

Social media may have several different types, but it also has several different

characteristics along with different definitions per characteristic. According to Sunil

Saxena, social media has seven characteristics. Sunil Saxena stated that “Social Media

websites should have a web space, web address, should be able to build profiles, connect

with friends, upload content in real time, enable conversations and posts should have

timestamps” (Saxena, 2013). According to Ryan Dube, a social media website should

also be user based, interactive, community driven, should thrive on relationships and

should have an emotional factor on their content.

deeper, it is important to define what mental health is, how teenagers works, and how

social media can affect them. Mental health is a person’s condition regarding their

psychological and emotional behavior. Christian Nordqvist said that,

“mental health refers to our cognitive, and/or emotional well being - it is all about

how we think, feel and behave. Mental health, if somebody has it, can also mean

an absence of a mental disorder. Approximately 25% of people in the UK have a

mental health problem during their lives. The USA is said to have the highest

incidence of people diagnosed with mental health problems in the developed

world. Your mental health can affect your daily life, relationships and even your

physical health. Mental health also includes a person's ability to enjoy life - to

attain a balance between life activities and efforts to achieve psychological

resilience” (Nordqvist, 2015).

On the other hand, the process of Adolescence is to be defined as the teenage

years between ages 13 to 19 years old. According to Robert Hedaya, “during the teen

years, under the influence of massive new hormonal messages, as well as current needs

and experiences, the teenager's brain is being reshaped, and reconstructed” (Hedaya,

2010). He also stated that,

“one of the important things to remember is that what a teen does and is exposed

to during this critical time in life, has a large influence on the teen's future,

because experience and current needs shape the pruning and sprouting process in

the brain” (Hedaya, 2010).

in his/her future years.

“if a teen is playing lots of video games, this will shape the brain in such a way

that they might become an excellent fighter pilot, but becoming an accountant or

researcher will be less possible. Being the class clown will help make a good sales

person later on, and running for class president will develop brain skills that are

needed to run a business or take on a management position” (Hedaya, 2010)

Given what Robert Hedaya said, this could be applied to how social media can

affect the mental health of a teenager. Similar to how the brain develops skills that are

based on when a teenager plays video games and making the brain want to do it more,

social media can affect the brain into internet addiction which can cause mental health

issues. Dani-Elle Dube said that,

“the more time you spend on the internet and social media, the more likely you

are to suffer from mental health issues, according to researchers at McMaster

University.

The link between internet addiction and mental health issues is stronger than

previously thought, researchers say, as more and more people are unable to cope

with everyday life without having an online fix” (Dube, 2016).

Although not everyone has mental health problems, a huge amount of people do.

“There are different kinds of mental illnesses, some of these types are depression,

anxiety, schizophrenia, bipolar mood disorder, personality disorders, trauma and eating
disorders. The most common mental illnesses are anxiety and depressive disorders”

(Department of Health and Human Services, 2007)

On the other hand, a person with the absence of a mental health problem would

supposedly have six characteristics of a good mental health. According to Michelle

Clarke, a mentally healthy person should have a positive attitude towards their self-

perception, self-esteem and acceptance, their control of behaviour, should have a true

perception of the world, should be sustaining relationships and should give affection, and

should have a self-direction and productivity (Clarke, 2011).

Given all these statements, the use of social media also has its benefits. According

to Gwenn Schurgin O'Keeffe and Kathleen Clarke-Pearson, “ Engaging in various forms

of social media is a routine activity that research has shown to benefit children and

adolescents by enhancing communication, social connection, and even technical skills”

(Schurgin O’Keeffe & Clarke-Pearson, 2011). Gwenn Schurgin O'Keeffe and Kathleen

Clarke-Pearson added,

“Social media sites allow teens to accomplish online many of the tasks that are

important to them offline: staying connected with friends and family, making new

friends, sharing pictures, and exchanging ideas. Social media participation also

can offer adolescents deeper benefits that extend into their view of self,

community, and the world” (Schurgin O’Keeffe & Clarke-Pearson, 2011).

By Daniel Nations Trends Expert. (2016). Serious Question: What Exactly Is Social
Media? Retrieved October 01, 2016, from http://webtrends.about.com/od/web20/a/social-
media.htm

Clarke, M. (2011, August 22). 6 Characteristics of the Mentally Healthy Person.

Default - Stanford Children's Health. (n.d.). Retrieved October 01, 2016, from
http://www.stanfordchildrens.org/en/topic/default?id=the-growing-child-adolescent-13-
to-18-years-90-P02175

Dube, R. (n.d.). Characteristics of Social Networks. Retrieved October 01, 2016, from
http://socialnetworking.lovetoknow.com/Characteristics_of_Social_Networks

Grahl, T. (n.d.). The 6 Types of Social Media. Retrieved October 01, 2016, from
http://timgrahl.com/the-6-types-of-social-media/

Gumbiner, J. J., Krau, M., & Fries, A. (n.d.). Psychology Today. Retrieved October 01,
2016, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/adolescence

Hedaya, R. J. (2010, June 03). The Teenager's Brain. Retrieved October 01, 2016, from
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/health-matters/201006/the-teenagers-brain

Holmes, L. (2016, May 16). What is Mental Health? Retrieved October 01, 2016, from
https://www.verywell.com/what-is-mental-health-2330755

Lin, Y. Y. (n.d.). The 6 Types of Social Media. Retrieved October 01, 2016, from
http://seopressor.com/social-media-marketing/types-of-social-media/

Monti, J. (2012, August 09). How Are Mental Health Disorders Diagnosed? Retrieved
October 04, 2016, from http://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health

Nordqvist, C. (2015, November 03). Retrieved October 01, 2016, from

Saxena, S. (2013, August 13). 7 key characteristics of Social Media -. Retrieved October
01, 2016, from http://www.easymedia.in/7-key-characteristics-of-social-media/

Schurgin O'Keeffe, G., & Clarke-Pearson, K. (2011, April). The Impact of Social Media
on Children, Adolescents, and Families. Retrieved October 01, 2016, from
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/127/4/800.full
Social Media Defined. (n.d.). Retrieved October 1, 2016, from
http://www.socialmediadefined.com/what-is-social-media/

Tesorero, A. (2013, April 13). The Characteristics of Social Media. Retrieved October
01, 2016, from http://homeofservice.com/blogs/21/the-characteristics-of-social-
media/#.V_Jja5N96CQ

The Five Components of Social Media - True Voice Media. (n.d.). Retrieved October 01,
2016, from http://truevoicemedia.com/free-social-media-resources/five-components-
social-media/

What is social media? - Definition from WhatIs.com. (n.d.). Retrieved October 01, 2016,
from http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/social-media