Üsküdar Üniversitesi Founding Rector Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan participated in the program “Health and Life Guide with Ezgi & Barış” broadcast on Beyaz TV. Making striking evaluations on the impact of social media on our lives, Tarhan stated that one should be the subject, not the object, of social media, which he defined as the 'open door of the house'. Pointing out that spending more than 3 hours a day on social media, apart from conscious use, can impair mental health, Tarhan stated that today's adolescents have become victims of social media. Tarhan said, “We are hospitalizing, or rather, forced to hospitalize, more adolescents than we have ever seen.”
The Open Door of the House: Social Media
Üsküdar Üniversitesi Founding Rector Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, drawing attention to the need for children and adults to learn media literacy, said: “Social media is a technology; technology is inherently neutral. It can be beneficial or harmful depending on how we use it. Therefore, social media should not immediately be put in the defendant's chair. Its use or non-use needs to be evaluated. In 2015, the UK officially established social media brigades. What does the word 'brigade' have to do with social media? This actually shows that they see it as a kind of war argument. Naming it this way, suggesting it will be used for political goals or to change and manipulate masses... I researched it on the internet, checked the source to see if it was true, found it to be true, and was surprised! In 2015, this could be a large army, an army of trolls, or normal propaganda, black propaganda, grey propaganda. In other words, anything can be done. Currently, the internet environment has the potential to use every word like a bullet. Every word has the potential to be beautiful for a person's soul, and every word has the potential to be bad for one or two people's souls. When we talk about social media, our child, with a smartphone in hand, in the safe environment of our home, can enter the most unsafe places. They can easily access times and places that are not suitable for their age, not suitable for their chronological or biological age, or their mental age. For this reason, we now call social media and smartphones the 'open door of the house'. That is, parents think the child is in front of their eyes at home, but the child can enter very insecure places. Therefore, it is necessary to teach media literacy to children and even adults. Everyone needs to have media literacy; if they don't, social media starts to have a negative impact.”
Those Who Fail to Fulfill Their Loyalty Obligation Are Exposed…
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, stating that social media benefits honesty, noted that it's impossible to do something secretly on social media and that a person inevitably leaves a digital trace. Tarhan said; “There is a saying; 'A liar's candle burns until bedtime.' I translated it as; 'A liar's candle burns until the internet.' Meaning, it comes out sooner or later, which is why those who fail to fulfill their loyalty obligation in marriage are easily and seriously exposed. In fact, we can say that social media also benefits honesty. It pushes individuals to be open, transparent, and honest. It is impossible for such a person to do something secretly on social media; they inevitably leave a digital trace. Therefore, it compels people to be honest, otherwise, their life gets turned upside down. Businesspeople have a saying; 'I can lose money, but I don't want to lose trust,' because when you lose trust, your credit limit is gone.”
Spending More Than 3 Hours Impairs Mental Health…
Tarhan, mentioning that individuals are culturally managed under the influence of social media, said; “Social media is by nature very convenient, useful, and attractive, incredibly attractive. Currently, it is more attractive than television, and active, instant communication is effortlessly achieved. For people with impulse control disorder, for example, they enter their social media accounts as a stress reduction technique, and you look up to find hours have passed. There are studies. The mental health of individuals who spend more than 3 hours a day on social media deteriorates, but more important than this time is actually what the person is interested in on social media. That is, a person has a purpose on social media; they can spend time on social media for that purpose. For example, a journalist can spend hours researching a topic to perform a purpose-oriented analysis; there is no harm in this, but in this case, you become the subject of social media. If you become the object of social media, for instance, something you like pops up, and you realize hours have passed. What happens? We deceive ourselves. The person voluntarily falls under the influence of things sold there, advertisements, etc., and changes their own culture. Individuals are culturally managed. With artificial intelligence, based on the keywords related to the topics a person accesses most, it captures your interest area even if you don't want it, and sends you news from there. In fact, 'persuasion laboratories' have been established in search engines related to this.”
“Adolescents Have Become Victims of Social Media”
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, emphasizing that children are particularly victims of the negative use of social media, said; “In terms of health, when it comes to social media use, adolescents are particularly the most affected. Currently, adolescents have truly become victims of social media. That's why families are crying out, 'Our generation is being lost,' but this is not just in Turkey; it's a global phenomenon. We are currently hospitalizing, or forced to hospitalize, more adolescents than we have ever seen. Adolescents reporting their parents to the police, drawing knives on their mother and father. The negative use of social media particularly affects children as victims. It greatly impacts within the family and human relationships. It weakens trust in human relationships. Trust in human relationships, especially for patients with mood disorders, like bipolar disorder, means they cannot regulate their emotions due to the illness.”
“It Is Necessary to Ensure Quality Work Is Visible”
Tarhan, discussing what advertisers using social media should pay attention to, said; “The advertising and promotional power of social media is very important. What is true there has a somewhat slow impact but is sustainable. What is untrue acts like a flash in the pan, influencing people but eventually dissipating because it lacks sustainability. Therefore, what those who will use social media, meaning advertisers, should pay attention to is: ensuring sustainability by giving clear, honest, and transparent advertisements. It's important to be able to make substantiated defenses and provide information, not just instant attractive things. Visibility is important in this era. Visibility is important; if you do something but it's not visible, you remain limited. It is necessary to ensure that quality work is visible. This is the positive use of social media.”
News: Ebranur Özdemir