OPINION: Is social media driving us apart?
By: Grace Peek
"Young people using social media are more likely to suffer from loneliness"
According to new data from Statista, the average person spends a shocking 153 minutes a day on social media.
As humans we crave pleasure and gratification. Now in our pockets, 95 percent of 18-21 year olds are comforted by the reassuring weight of a mobile phone. But are these devices weighing on us more heavily than we’ve been led to believe?
Social media was created to bring us 'together'. Mark Zuckerburg, the creator of Facebook, famously said: “The thing we are trying to do at Facebook, is just help people connect and communicate more efficiently.” Ironically, since its creation in 2004, people have never felt more lonely and disconnected from one another.
A recent survey by YouGov found that younger generations who use social media most frequently, are more likely to suffer from loneliness. Over 80% of young people aged 18-24 claim to feel some form of loneliness, compared to 70% of over 55’s.
Might social media be to blame? The very thing created to bring us together has become the exact thing driving us apart. Maybe if we took time to unplug, and look up at the world, we might all be happier.
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