All that time spent on Facebook may lower your chances of fear of missing out, but it could raise your stress level if your friends are posting about hard times.
A study conducted by the Pew Research Internet Center surveyed 1,801 adults and found that those who use social media often indicate lower levels of stress. The survey also found that women who spend a lot of time on social media experienced less FOMO (fear of missing out).
However, the study also found that social media users — especially women — who stay up-to-date on relevant events in the lives of their friends and family show higher levels of stress. The increase in stress is due to unfortunate events occurring to a friend or family member, such as getting a divorce or developing cancer, being discussed on these social media sites.
Ariella Bak, a 19-year-old UF student, said she experiences less FOMO while she’s on various websites and apps like Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat.
“I check social media sites five to six times a day,” Bak said. “It’s nice to see what everyone is doing.”
However, finding out about a stressful event through social media “would trigger some kind of other emotion like sadness or even anger. It creates a feeling of being less engaging with the actual person,” Bak said.
For other students like Dallas Piggott, a UF psychology freshman, FOMO isn’t an issue, but stress is still a possible factor.
“I only have Facebook, but I check it frequently,” Piggot said.
Piggott enjoys using Facebook to stay in the know, but if a serious event were to happen to a friend or family member of hers, Piggott said she would rather find out from a personal phone call instead of through a website or app.
“I wouldn’t want to find out a serious problem was going on with someone I know over the internet. It’s impersonal,” Piggot said.
Although you may hear about a bad situation more quickly on social media in the long run, finding out the specific details might end up taking longer, which could result in more stress, said Mindy McAdams, a UF professor in the College of Journalism and Communications. She said finding out about a stressful event this way leaves you feeling disconnected from any further questions you want to get answered.
“We are often so casual about social media,” McAdams said. “Stress levels can rise because you can’t find out additional information and yet are craving to know how it happened, or if the person is going to be alright.”
