THE INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL NETWORKS ON THE SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL STATE OF YOUNG PEOPLE

Abstract

The research problem of this article is the impact of social media on the social and emotional functioning of young people. Young people belong to an age group whose representatives use the Internet and all social media, and in addition, their presence in the online space is an important aspect of life for them. The study was conducted as part of a quantitative strategy, in which first-year students of second-cycle studies in the field of Pedagogy, educated at the Warsaw University of Life Sciences, participated. The study used a survey questionnaire, and the technique was surveying. The results of the study indicate a negative impact of using social media on both the emotional and social functioning of representatives of the young generation. Particularly negative consequences are visible in the emotional sphere and mental well-being. 28% of the respondents admitted that their self-esteem decreases after viewing various content in social media. Almost all respondents (96%) indicated that they feel overloaded with the influx of information from the Internet. Over 50% of the respondents admitted that they experience mood swings related to using the broadly understood Internet. 44% of respondents admitted that they use social media at the expense of sleep and regeneration. 44% admitted that their interpersonal contacts are weakened as a result of their use of the Internet. The data obtained also draw attention to the occurrence of the FOMO syndrome, or fear of missing out on something on the Internet, of falling out of circulation, which increasingly affects young people.