How Social Media Takes Away Our Happiness

Clubhouse voicemail-based social media (socmed) fever emerged when Tiktok's euphoria had not yet subsided. This adds to the long list of applications that are often required to be installed on many people's phones. This certainly adds to the duration of using social media, which is recorded to increase every year. The inaugural article of VOI's Series Article, "The Two-Edged Sword of Social Media" will reflect on our behavior on social media. Yes, we are. You are also us.

In less than five years, TikTok's social media platform (socmed) has successfully catapulted its name on the global scene. The number of active TikTok users exploded to 800 million in 2020, referring to We Are Social data.

Socmed from China is the number seven platform with the most users in the world. Its popularity far surpasses Twitter and Snapchat, the two social media - though having different characteristics- that were born earlier.

Application research company Senior Tower nominated TikTok as the most downloaded application in 2020. There are at least 63.7 million downloads on iOS and Android devices.

That number is up 1.6 percent from the same period last year. Interestingly, according to Sensor Tower, the country that downloads this application the most is Indonesia. We contribute eleven percent of TikTok's total downloads.

TikTok adds to the long list of the most used social media besides Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp. For many people, TikTok is an application that must appear on the homepage of their smartphone.

In the midst of the infatuation of global citizens enlivening TikTok's timeline, a voicemail-based social media, Clubhouse, emerged. This brand-new social media has succeeded in provoking new enthusiasm amidst TikTok's unabated enthusiasm.

Clubhouse fever

The outbreak of enthusiasm about Clubhouse cannot be separated from the influence of a number of world revolutionary figures, such as the founder of Tesla Motors, Elon Musk and the founder of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg. These figures appear to have pioneered the use of the Clubhouse.

Many people consider Clubhouse as a social media with useful content quality. Clubhouse fever spreads to various parts of the world, including Indonesia. The characteristic of Clubhouse in providing a unique experience by prioritizing the voice message feature is one of its attractions, in addition to its exclusivity, of course.

Yes. Clubhouse did appear as an exclusive platform. Recalling the momentum of the breaking out of Clubhouse's enthusiasm, that only the 'worthy' of big names opened up space for discussion.

However, in its development, social media is still social media. Its use is widespread. Many people then set up a discussion room at the Clubhouse for small scale conferences involving people in private circles.

There is no Elon Musk or Mark Zuckerberg and the knowledge provided by both. But, that's okay. That's social media. There is no standard classification regarding who can and cannot use it.

One person who doesn't want to miss the Clubhouse trend is Wanda. The Clubhouse trend, said Wanda, originated from friends who came from influencers.

Initially, Wanda often saw colleagues often giving out invitations to join the application, which was first created in March 2020. Interest in downloading the application began to emerge.

For people who are downloading for the first time like Wanda, Clubhouse is indeed a pretty fun social media. According to her, the platform was created specifically for discussion. The discussion themes are endless, ranging from light, serious discussions to topics of adult issues. All can be discussed. Free.

"But because it is a free application, right.. and because you can share anything, free there is no provision like this, like that ... So, everyone can get the benefit from the discussion," said Wanda when contacted by VOI.

Wanda admitted that she focused on the Clubhouse as a means of extracting useful information from discussion rooms with interesting discussions. "That's why I'm a user who really needs it."

Same with Wanda, Ole admitted the same thing. The 27-year-old man was attracted to Clubhouse for one reason: freedom. In that sense, he is free to sort out the content that he wants to consume.

This freedom, according to Ole, creates its own enjoyment that he cannot get from other platforms. Ole's goal in downloading Clubhouse is clear, which is to discuss freely. Freedom leads Ole to enjoy various rooms with a variety of discussions that indeed he wants.

"The benefit is clear, our need for uncensored information is absolute. I don't get that freedom in other applications, apart from Clubhouse, ”said Ole.

The entrapment of social media addiction

The increase in the number of social media users is directly proportional to the duration of its use. According to Statista, the average time spent accessing social media for the world's population has increased since the last five years.

In 2016, for example. The average time the world's population uses the internet to access social media in one day reaches 128 minutes. In 2017, the number increased to 134 minutes per day.

In 2018, the number again increased to 142 minutes per day. Then, in 2019 it will be 145 minutes per day. And in 2020, it's still 145 minutes per day. The length of time a person is on social media is not without impact.

Clinical psychologist, Nadya Pramesrani, said that social media activities should not be excessive. Things that we hear often. But in fact, it is important to inculcate this understanding over and over again.

Even in several periods, a person must periodically reduce the use of social media or what is commonly known as social media detox. Because if not, generally someone will become addicted.

"In this day and age, social media can indeed become addictive. Socmed addiction is addictive behavior in which a person is very concerned with the performance and activities that occur in social media and has an uncontrollable urge to use social media continues to interfere with his/her daily functioning," said Nadya as quoted by VOI.

Nadya also added that the impact of excessive use of social media cannot be underestimated. Excessive use of social media, Nadya said in several studies correlated with low self-esteem.

Self-esteem is the way someone appreciates, likes, and cherishes oneself. When a person's self-esteem is weakened, the impact is that social media users often compare themselves with other people. They often feel deprived.

For that, it is important for netizens to be wise in social media. Especially to reduce the risk of getting unhappy feelings from social media addiction.

"For now, I do not find the maximum standard for how long, but what is needed is self-control and awareness to ensure that other daily functioning (such as self-hygiene, work, live social interaction, study, rest, exercise) can run in a balanced manner. However, it is recommended that there is a period of time for a digital detox," closed Nadya.

The impact of social media addiction that harms the self-esteem of someone like Nadya, is confirmed by research reported in the JAMA Psychiatry journal. The journal found that teens who use social media for more than three hours per day are at high risk for mental health problems regarding self-image.

The negative effects of excessive use of social media are not only that. In the United States, there is evidence. The Pew Research survey, which examined netizens from US adolescents, said that some of the risks of addiction to social media include increased feelings of anxiety and even depression.

But unfortunately, some people, especially US teenagers studied by Pew Research, still underestimate the negative effects of social media. If this is allowed, it is not impossible that it can lead to even more serious problems.

Next Article: Virtual Patrol of Virtual Police