Gen-Z Needs To Take Care Of Mental Health In The Era Of Social Media

Photo: Special

JAKARTA - Gen-Z is very close to three words, namely Creativity, Connection, and Mental Health. In today's digital culture, Gen-Z is the dominant strength, both in terms of creativity as well as in the emergence of new trends. Not only that, 95 percent Generation Z spends its time actively on social media.

Therefore, behind various creative explorations in the digital world, this generation is also faced with digital literacy challenges, such as digital identity management and online thinking patterns. Based on a study, the majority of Generation Z does not understand the risks of online identity, so problems that often arise that interfere with mental health often arise.

What is the digital trend in Indonesia in 2024, so that Genz is more prepared for strategy and is open at every opportunity, but mental health is maintained? The Ministry of Communication and Information (Kominfo) held a Digital Literacy Obrol Obral, on Friday, April 26, which raised the topic "TrenGenZ: Creativity, Connection, and Mental Health in the Digital World."

Generation Z has the potential to create a trend in many mediums, because it is supported by facilities that may not be available in the previous generation. According to Anita Wahid as the Digital Literacy Activist from Mafindo, even though Gen-Z gets the nickname as the most creative generation, in fact, each generation has its own creative portion.

Anita also added that Gen-Z was born and growing in a rapidly and easily technological development environment. Thus, there are many opportunities to create works that involve sensory with ease of artificial intelligence. Gen-Z is a generation that has the ability to display their own naturality side, without fear of being hindered by rigid social consequences like in the previous generation.

Not only that, Gen-Z is also able to collaborate on creative ideas in the world of entrepreneurship, as it has recently been felt that many businesses have 'taste' typical of Generation Z.

"A recent, innovative business, usually there is always GenZ passion and soul," said Anita.

Meanwhile, the development of the digital world that continues to develop requires one ability to establish relationships with various existing platforms. As the voice representative of Generation Z, Yofania Asyifa Jami as Founder of @definite.id & Mental Health Influencer admits that he has a unique way of developing self-potential in the digital world.

Yofania, who is also a mental health survivor, shares tips on optimizing Gen-Z's potential with various existing digital platforms according to preferences, depending on each other's interests and talents, such as writing enthusiasts, can use X, while visual audio enthusiasts can use Instagram or YouTube.

Yofania also added that although they are free to reveal anything on social media, especially those who are positive, there must still be a limit. He also suggested not to share too much, especially regarding personal data on social media. For Yofania, social media can be used as a means of interacting in real time even though there is a distance that separates them. The more diverse the platform, it also opens up opportunities to expand the network of friends and social interactions in the digital world.

"Even though it's virtual, we have a sense of direct involvement and have more connections. In the past, we could only comment. Currently, there are many platforms that make us more connected," added Yovania.

Meanwhile, according to Marissa Meditania as a Clinical Psychologist, the challenge faced by gen-Z in this fast social media era is the matter of finding identity. Because the current life span of the Z-gene is between a dozen years and 25 years, it is the beginning in determining the next steps, and usually many Z-gene are at a crossroads in making decisions.

Social media is easy to access by anyone and at any time, becoming vulnerable to harmful conditions, therefore they still have to set limits on the use of social media. Marissa added that when using social media, the brain removes dopamine, substances in the brain that make people feel relaxed, so that social media often escape real-life problems.

"Duh, it's really hard to think about work challenges. So playing games and social media or those related to gadgets. Because naturally we feel relaxed we can add. And when we don't use gadgets there are points where it's like drug users or cigarettes that find it difficult to neutralize feelings towards gadgets. And when we don't use gadgets, we are worried," Marissa said.

However, the challenges of the digital world are not only faced by gen-Z. With different levels, each generation is facing the increasingly unstoppable challenges of the digital world.