Stating that the addictive effect of social media is defined as behavioral addiction and has taken its place in classification books, Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan said, “As we observed people who went into serious crisis because they couldn't access Instagram and made frantic posts on other social media platforms, social media addiction became more visible.”
Üsküdar University Founding Rector, Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, evaluated the addiction created by the negative psychological effects of social media.
The addictive effect of social media
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan stated that social media addiction is accepted as a behavioral addiction and that this addiction creates serious changes in people's brains, saying, “We clearly saw the addictive effect of social media with the recent crisis on Instagram. As we observed people who went into serious crisis because they couldn't access Instagram and made frantic posts on other social media platforms, social media addiction became more visible. Families were noticing this situation in their own circles, but on social media, we can see its dimensions more clearly. People, especially young people, make immoderate comments and absurd posts as if their lives have lost all meaning.”
Social media and behavioral addiction…
Prof. Dr. Tarhan stated that the addictive effect of social media is defined as behavioral addiction and has taken its place in classification books, saying, “For instance, just as gambling addiction is not like substance addiction, neither is social media addiction. This type of addiction disrupts the brain's reward system. Normally, the paths in the brain's reward system are like footpaths, but in addicted individuals, these paths become like highways. This area of the brain produces and converts more serotonin and dopamine, and when this is cut off, individuals go into crisis. In the literature, this situation is referred to as 'reward deficiency syndrome'. Because individuals cannot get enough reward, they demand more, which somewhat impairs their judgment. They begin to act impulsively and uncontrollably, and their likelihood of making mistakes increases. Just as in substance addiction, uncontrolled use and withdrawal symptoms appear. For example, these withdrawal symptoms are experienced as irritability. In fact, years ago, we had to develop a scale for this called ‘Fear of Missing Out’ (FOMO).”
Fear of not being online
Prof. Dr. Tarhan also noted that the fear of not being online causes a sense of fear when unable to connect to the internet in a given location, stating, “This situation raises anxiety levels. We had developed a scale for this called ‘FOMO’ (Fear of Missing Out). This scale is used to measure the prevalence of such situations. It particularly affects young people; currently, the 12-19 age group is seriously affected by this. What happens as a result of this impact? Young people's daily life activities are disrupted, and school refusal emerges. They become unable to think about anything else; their social interactions are disrupted.”
Social media has also changed ways of doing business
Prof. Dr. Tarhan explained that social media has changed even adults' ways of doing business, emotional sharing, romance tools, and consumption habits, stating, “Just as it affects shopping habits, it also influences political participation. Wars now take place in the cyber environment. In 2015, the UK established a social media brigade. This brigade is a unit created to develop war strategies on the internet. The necessity of establishing ministries to combat disinformation has even come to the fore.”
There are even cases hospitalized for social media addiction treatment
Stating that “Social media addiction affects not only individuals but also society,” Prof. Dr. Tarhan said, “The social effects of social media addiction have also begun to emerge. A week-long access problem to Instagram created a different impact, especially on addicted individuals. Addicted individuals are more affected because they cannot get the same pleasure from other things that they get from Instagram. Interestingly, there are even cases hospitalized for social media addiction treatment. Being deprived of social media for a week helps some people give up this addiction.”
They relieve themselves in plastic bottles
Prof. Dr. Tarhan also stated that people addicted to social media generally do not see themselves as addicted and say, "I'm not addicted," “However, just like with other addictions, because they do not see themselves as addicted, they begin to face the consequences of addiction. These consequences include behaviors such as not going to school, neglecting self-care, waking up late, not brushing teeth, and neglecting bathing and toilet needs. We see cases where, especially in gaming addiction, individuals use plastic bottles in their rooms to relieve themselves because they do not want to lose time while playing. These types of addictions can enslave individuals to the point of captivity.”
Clinical treatment is required in advanced cases
Prof. Dr. Tarhan pointed out that clinical treatment is required in advanced cases, adding, “However, in mild cases, when we investigate who social media addiction is more prevalent among, two types of situations emerge. Firstly, if family ties are weak, if time spent together is scarce, and if there isn't a warm, loving environment in the family, these individuals turn to social media as a stress reduction technique. When something upsets them or they feel unhappy, social media provides temporary happiness. This temporarily relieves the person and makes them addicted to social media. Social media offers a different kind of happiness at that moment.”