The Effects of Social Media Use on Perception of Self and Others

Studies suggest that the growing trend of social media and Internet use has changed the way we perceive and think, and some suggest that social media and Internet use has also altered our emotions, much of which is not explained thoroughly in academic research. The purpose of this study is to examine the psychological effects on the self and relationships with others related to frequent social media use. Past research has found that social media has been linked to build more intimate levels of communication through use of a platform (Snapchat) that easily depicts body language and portrays the emotions of users. Other research indicates that there may be gender differences in response to social media posting in relationships-- that jealousy is triggered more in women when men post public content involving the opposite sex, but jealousy is triggered in both genders if content with the opposite sex is posted privately. Moreover, anxiety levels were elevated in men when they interchanged electronic messages with the opposite sex and not vice versa, whereas women experienced a rise in anxiety levels when receiving and sending messages with the other women, but men did not feel the same when exchanging messages with men. Due to these findings, I hypothesize that the frequency of social media use will be negatively related to level of self-esteem for all participants. Also, I hypothesize that those who use social media more intensely and frequently will be less satisfied with their relationships