Chapter 2

A REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

This chapter provides a comprehensive summary of previous research documents written

in articles, journals, books, internet and other sources which are relevant to this study. This aims

to further establish the framework and methodology of this study and to site evidences on its

relevance and significance to the current situation. The review includes: social media definition

and purpose, studies relating to mental health and the effects of social media to mental health

Effects of social media in the Mental Health

Use of social media has been prevalent world-wide. More and more people are using social
media platforms especially now, with the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic that is continuously influencing
and reshaping various aspects of people’s daily lives. 
Since people can’t hang out with their colleagues, clients and prospects in real life during the
past months of lockdown, people have adopted to the new norm by connecting virtually - on every
platform possible. This results in rapid increase of social media platform usage, mostly for
communication, business and entertainment.

In the Digital 2020 July Global Statshot report written by Simon Kemp (2020) of Datareportal,
more than half of the world now is using social media platforms. 4.57 billion people around the
world now use the internet, of those users, 346 million new users have come online within the last 12
months. (Reference: https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2020-july-global-statshot)
In another research by Viktoriya Trifonova (2020) at Global Web Index, it has been concluded
that large part of the social media users is aged 16-23 (Gen Z) and individuals aged 24-37 (millennials)
which mostly are using it for fun. Creating and uploading videos on platforms like TikTok is one of the
few online behaviors that were observed to have accelerated especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
(Reference: GlobalWebIndex Coronavirus Research 2020 https://blog.globalwebindex.com/chart-of-the-
week/social-media-amid-the-outbreak/)
As of Andie Phoon (2017), in evaluating the statistics gathered from numerous researches, it
goes to show that individuals especially those belonging to Gen Z and Millennial generations are so
caught up and amazed with what social media offers. They become so engaged in the whirlwind of
staggering likes, shares, and tweets without noticing how social media has been shaping the society,
how addictive it is, and how it has been influencing their thoughts, actions, security, and confidence.
Social media has become big part of everyone’s lives and in the moments where they are not attached
to it, they react in ways that are similar to the symptoms of withdrawal. Social Media and Its Stark
Influence on Society
Although social media has undeniably benefited a lot of people specially during this time of
crisis, it is also vital to understand the impact it plays on mental health especially now that the usage has
dramatically increased.

Robinson and Smith (HelpGuide.org 2017), states that excessive use of social media can fuel
feelings of anxiety, depression, isolation, and fear of missing out (FOMO).

In addition, a review article of Bashir and Bhat (2017) written in The International

Journal of Indian Psychology determines the influence of regular use of social media on the

wellbeing and mental health of the users. Also determine that younger generation, as teens and

young adults spending in online socialization potentially experiencing at greater risk of negative

effects such as anxiety, stress, depression, and loneliness.

On the other hand, the study of O’Reilly, Dogra, et al. (2018) states that despite of

challenges of using social media and the risks, social media does offer a useful way of educating

and reaching adolescents to promote mental wellbeing.

Additionally, the study of Rajesh and Priya (2020) examines the impact of social media

on student’s mental health issues. As a result, the more usage of social media, number of social

networking sites and too much of time spent on social networking sites is affecting the students’

mental health such as depression and anxiety.