The "influencer" culture that's popping up all over social media is just one example of how norms of success and wealth are being set. These influencers post about their luxurious lifestyles, exotic holidays, and expensive products, which draw huge audiences and turn them into symbols of wealth and aspiration. As a result, many people chasing to be rich, famous, and successful while neglecting or omitting all the hard work that went into getting there.
"Couple goals" is another way that social media sets romance standards. Celebrities and social media influencers post a ton of pictures and stories about their own love and romance. It is easy into thinking that their relationship is perfect. People post the best parts of their relationship on social media and these carefully chosen moments don't necessarily reflect the reality of a relationship on a day-to-day basis. This can cause people to have a broken view of what a happy, healthy relationship looks like and make them feel like they're not up to the standard.
The Impact
It is no secret that mental illness has become a huge problem in Indonesia. According to the 2013 data from the Ministry of Health, 6% of adults have mental health issues, like anxiety and mood problems. A study from 2015 said that mental disorders are most common in teens, and that Indonesia's youth make up 15% of the total mental illness burden (Thomas, 2019). While all these figures may not be entirely attributed to social media, it should also be noted that social media usage is extremely high in Indonesia; Indonesia has the 4th largest Facebook user population in the world and the 5th largest Twitter user population. (Thomas, 2019).
Not to mention, according to a recent survey of over 1,000 girls (10-17 years old), 1 in 2 girls believe toxic beauty advice posted on social media is the cause of low self-esteem, and 90% of girls said they follow at least 1 social media account that causes them to feel less beautiful (Dove, 2022).
To sum up, social media's effect on mental health is multifaceted. While it offers many advantages in terms of communicating, connecting, and expressing oneself, it can also have a negative impact on mental health in a variety of ways. The constant comparisons, the cyberbullying, the fear of missing out, the addiction, the body image problems, the social isolation, the sleep issues, and the information overload can all lead to anxiety, depression and a decrease in overall mental health.\
References:
Dove. (2022). Toxic beauty standards on social media: The stats -- Dove. Dove. https://www.dove.com/us/en/stories/campaigns/social-media-and-body-image.html
L Penenberg, A. (2010, July 1). Social Networking Affects Brains Like Falling in Love. fastcompany.com. https://www.fastcompany.com/1659062/social-networking-affects-brains-falling-love
Loeb, W. (2022, February 3). Influencer Impact On Consumers Increasing -- Facebook Has Less Power. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/walterloeb/2022/02/03/influencer-impact-on-consumers-increasing--facebook-has-less-power/?sh=15cd6cd94bad
Mir, A. A. (2023). Hyper-Reality Unleashed: How social media shapes our perception of the world. The Companion. https://thecompanion.in/hyper-reality-unleashed-how-social-media-shapes-our-perception-of-the-world#:~:text=Social%20media%20has%20notably%20contributed,to%20distinguish%20reality%20from%20fiction.
