"Are people turning away from social media? But that tide might be finally, yet slowly, turning. My Gen Z students have recently been the ones telling me about social media "cleanses", whereby they take a break from it all for a prescribed duration, and "grayscaling" their socials (whereby color images turn to black and white, making them less eye-candy-esque-and all around having better cellphone etiquette such as putting it away during class and turning it off at night."
"Psychologists and other researchers have for quite some time been warning about the addictive nature of social media activity; the likes and pings and notifications are like little hits of heroin for the brain. Phones enabled people to constantly feel seen, heard, important, and liked-however fake, transitory, and self-centered those patterns of behavior were. Comparing cellphone and social media obsession to an " addiction" was helpful because of that word's negative connotation in our society; we generally try to avoid addiction where we can."
Many people express concern about privacy while routinely posting exhaustive personal details online, including thoughts, relationships, traumas, locations, and pictures. Some Gen Z individuals are experimenting with social media cleanses and grayscaling to reduce visual temptation and improve cellphone etiquette, such as putting phones away during class and powering them off at night. Psychologists warn that likes, pings, and notifications produce addictive rewards similar to small drug hits, encouraging constant feelings of being seen and important. Preventing addiction includes avoiding addictive platforms and delaying smartphone access for children. Deleting social accounts and increasing real-world activities can reclaim time and reduce screen dependence.
Read at Psychology Today
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