Social Media vs. Identity

The effects of social media on identity.

As I have Changed everything around me has changed as well. At a very young age, I was exposed to Social media/Social Technology. When I got social media for the first time it was Facebook, it had just had started out, very popular, just like Bebo and MSN it was a want to fit into society and evolve identity online This is the same as the 21st Century, these online interactions form the identity and understand of self. Without social media you want be able to grow yourself, self and your platform. These platforms are allowing people to reflect and try different identities, learning and attempting new skills (Shapiro, L & Margolin, G 2015).

Everyone is living for everyone but themselves, they do stuff just to tell others and show others. Social media has evolved into a world of where people show one side of the story. This ruins self identity the particular reason for this circumstance you to try to be like everyone but your Identity. “A study in 2013 showed that Facebook usage was linked to both a short-term decrease in subjective wellbeing and a longer-term decrease in life satisfaction” (Gilroy-Ware,M 2018). People who grew up with social media, have now struggled with depression, Low self esteem and anxiety as Gilroy- Ware Study suggested. Although social media can be used people tend to follow what lifestyles they would like to be in, this is where these negative feelings, it really depends on how social media is used in society.

Few years back there was a time that I my self had fallen into the trap of over analyzing strangers life on social media better then mine. This triggered depression and low self esteem, Questioning my self “Why aren’t I traveling?” or “Why don't I go eat at different places?”, As Gilroy-Ware suggested the greater of numbers of strangers you follow on picturing networking then family and friends it is more likely to associated with symptoms of depression. This was one of my bad habits, following strangers (2018).

Although over the years I have changed my identity due to the factor of social media, Social media is and has been one of the largest impacts on me. It has allowed me to apricate the life I have as of the experiences I had gained in the earlier stage of my life due to social media. As I have grown I have establish the bounders of the positive and negative of social media/social technology these can include how often to use social media and engage in these platforms and being mindful of my Identity and how to protect it.

Has Social Media effected my identity? Yes though there has been a negative and positive effect on my identity, how I approach social media platforms nowadays if very different compared to when I started And we cant argue that over next few years social media platforms will grow even more. It just matters on how you approach the platforms.

References

A.Spies Shapiro, L & Margolin, G 2014, ‘Growing up wired: Social Networking Sities and Adolescents Psychosocial Development’, Clinical child and family psychology review, vol. 17,no. 1, pp. 1–18,viewed 19 February 2021, doi:10.1007/s10567–013–0135–1

Gerald, W 2018,’Tame the social media monster!’, Tomorrows world, viewed 19 February 2021, <https://www.tomorrowsworld.org/magazines/2018/march-april/tame-the-social-media-monster?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI042ZpI377gIVR5VLBR1-Pg1iEAAYAiAAEgINJfD_BwE>