NEW YORK: While emailing and instant messaging can have a positive impact on mental health for elderly users, the same cannot be said for social media applications, which are leaving many older people feeling down.
“Use of social networking sites was associated with poorer perceived mental health,” say researchers at York University in Toronto who sifted through data covering around 13,500 Canadians for a paper published in the journal PLOS Global Public Health in June.
“In contrast, email communication was positively associated with perceived mental health, with individuals who sent and received emails reporting better self-rated mental health,” the team explained. They said there was “no significant relationship” detected between mental health and instant messaging, online voice or video calls or even dating websites.
The team based their findings on information in the 2022 Canadian Internet Use Survey, which was produced by Statistics Canada, which is formally headed by the country’s industry minister.
“Understanding how digital communication tools are associated with mental health outcomes can inform policy and practice aimed at supporting mental well-being in this age group,” the researchers said, hoping that their research can “inform the development of targeted interventions and strategies to support mental well-being among older adults.”
The York study is only the latest to warn of the ill effects of social media on mental health. In 2021, PLOS published findings showing people engaged in so-called doomscrolling were making themselves feel even more isolated and glum amid the loneliness and disruptions caused by Covid lockdowns.
In 2023, a team at the University of Bournemouth found that “passive” use of social media – using it mainly to scroll through other users’ posts – left people more inclined to experience anxiety, depression and stress compared to more active users who share their own content. – dpa
