How Does Social Media Affect Happiness

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Social media is regularly used in a person’s life; whether it is scrolling through websites such as Facebook and
Instagram or having conversations with others. Either way social media was made to expand technology to users all over the world and bring another source of entertainment or at least that is what was expected of it. As of today, social media is no longer this innovative use of technology that everyone and anyone can participate in. While it is still an enjoyable pastime, a large part of the internet community does not use social media as a source of social interaction or entertainment anymore, which makes people wonder if social media affects the user's happiness. Despite how studies have shown that social media may either decrease …show more content…

Social media has been a platform that can share everything and everyone. Social media is a plague of offensive, judgemental, and argumentative platforms that leave people upset when viewing topics based on beliefs, opinions, and politics. But it can also cause dysphoria when seeing other people advertise their perfect lives. People will post about their great lives but the need to post so much is what could be hindering their sense of well­being (Kluger). Studies have also shown that happiness is caused by connecting with loved ones and religion, but does not mention social media (Wallis). But if social media makes people so unhappy then why do they continue to use it? The continued use is because people are so obsessed with being happy or pretending that they are, they do not care how happiness is achieved. Which is best said by Richard Schoch, “you drink the elixir of happiness not because you like the elixirs but because you like happiness,” in his critical article on positive psychology (Schoch). So is social media really what makes us unhappy or is it the pressure of being