Dylan and Manny chat with Dr. Chris Ferguson about the “social media hypothesis” of mental health. Dr. Ferguson is a clinical psychologist and professor at Stetson University. His research speciality is in media technology, and has co-written Moral Combat: Why the War on Violent Video Games Is Wrong. We talk about social comparison, suicide, moral panics, the “nocebo effect,” and more. The three of us push back against the popular view that social media use is causing poor mental health, but we remain very open to other viewpoints so feel free to disagree with us!

Dr. Ferguson’s column for Psychology Today, and his piece on the social media hypothesis.

Dylan’s articles on this topic:

• Why I'm Skeptical About the Link Between Social Media and Mental Health

• Facebook Deactivation and the Nocebo Effect 

• Social Media and the Magical Mirror

• Social Media and the Black Cat Fallacy 

Academic Papers & Summaries:

• ⁠Social media use, economic recession and income inequality in relation to trends in youth suicide in high-income countries: a time trends analysis⁠
• ⁠The Welfare Effects of Social Media⁠ 
• ⁠How Adolescents Use Social Media to Cope with Feelings of Loneliness and Anxiety During COVID-19 Lockdown⁠ 
• ⁠Teenagers aren’t as lonely in lockdown if interacting positively online⁠ 

Image by ⁠Pixelkult⁠ from ⁠Pixabay⁠