"Hell is Social Networks" a Lecture on the Dangers of Life Online

TUSCALOOSA — Social media may be dangerous for the development of healthy self-esteem in teens said Dr. Robert Howell in his lecture “Hell is Social Networks” April 5 in 205 Smith Hall.

In his lecture, Dr. Howell said that there are five main dangers of social media use: alienation from oneself, alienation from others, loss of privacy, epistemic disaster, and political catastrophe. These dangers, said Howell, are especially problematic when it comes to teens and young adults.

Balance between positive parental feedback and negative peer feedback is crucial for the development of positive self-esteem in teens Howell said.

“I don’t feel like kids today can go home, they don’t get to rest." Howell said. "There’s constantly this ability to actually receive commentary on their appearance and on who they are. Because of the fact that it’s quite addictive to actually see how many comments you’re getting and how many likes you’re getting and what’s being said, you wind up checking your phone more and more and spending less and less time getting feedback from your parents and more and more time with this, sometimes very dicey feedback, from your peers.”

This constant commentary causes teens to feel alienated both from themselves and others said Howell. It is through this alienation that social media has caused a rise in cosmetic surgery and in boys and young men with eating disorders Howell said.

“Teenage girls are reported to be as depressed as they’ve ever been, have the lowest levels of self-compassion of any demographic group, and girls who use technology the most are the most likely to say that they are depressed nearly every day,” Howell said.

On top of constant access to feedback from peers, a large part of the danger also stems from the fact that in online interactions one can’t see the crucial body cues of people’s hurt reactions to commentary said Howell. Unlike on social media platforms, in real life you don’t get to choose the emotions you display.

While being unable to offer any solutions for these problematic dangers, Dr. Howell concluded his lecture by urging his audience to be more careful with their social media use and to disconnect as often as possible.

April 28, 2018 | By Katherine Fish