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| Facebook knows Instagram is bad for teens |
According to internal Facebook research, a new report from the Wall Street Journal shows that Instagram has done a lot of damage to the mental health of its young users.
The Wall Street Journal recently conducted this in-depth research that paints a terrible picture of the harmful effects that photo-sharing platforms have on young users, especially girls.
For teenage girls, Instagram is a powerful social comparison engine where people judge a person's worth, attractiveness, and success based on their comparison with others.
Teen girls can see perfect photos across the platform, and they will appear as ads and photos on the app's feed and exploration pages.
This usually has a negative effect on the mental health of these users. As stated in a slide from Facebook's internal presentation: We're making the image problem worse for a third of girls.
This article highlights some of the highlights of Facebook's internal research on Instagram's impact on young users.
A study by a social media giant among teenage Instagram users in the US and UK found that more than 40% of people who self-proclaimed to be unattractive said they developed feelings while using Instagram.
Facebook knows Instagram is bad for teens
Research by Facebook executives has found that Instagram aims to make better social comparisons with competing apps like TikTok and Snapchat.
Tik Tok pays more attention to performance, while Snapchat pays more attention to face filters. In contrast, Instagram highlights the user's body and lifestyle quite often.
These teens told Facebook researchers that they are addicted to Instagram and often want to reduce their Instagram use. However, you have no way to restrict their use.
Facebook internal research said in 2019: Teens attribute increased anxiety and depression to Instagram.
Facebook found that 13% of UK users and 6% of US users reported having thoughts of suicide and linked those thoughts to the app.
As The Wall Street Journal noted. The company's top management including CEO Mark Zuckerberg. They were asked by politicians about the effects of their apps on young users. But they did not give such detailed results.
The company told senators that its research was proprietary and confidential to encourage open and frank internal dialogue.
The company tried to address these issues by changing the user interface, such as trying to hide the number of likes. However, the company said the change did not appear to have a significant impact.