Abstract

In a world where everything is becoming digitalised, social media established itself as  major part of our daily routines. While offering limitless connections and access to information, its rapid growth and algorithm-driven nature are showing signs of having significant psychological risks. In this paper we look at how social media directly contributes to cognitive overload, distorts reality by pushing idealistic content, and intensifies mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem especially in the adolescent population. Basing my research on the Cognitive Load Theory, the concept of digital overconsumption, and the Social Comparison Theory, it aims to emphasise the idea of how the inherent design of social media exploits and damages our cognitive architecture. Furthermore, it explores the urgent need for intervention from parents, clinicians, and policymakers and the integration of digital literacy education as well as other set limitations. Social media is not going anywhere, so we have to learn and adapt it to become a tool, not a replacement for real human connections.

Introduction 

In the digital world, where we all are as connected as ever and have access to a tool to fulfil any want or need we may have – the negative aspects often get overlooked or ignored (Reinecke & Trepte, 2014). The benefits of instant access to information and connections are undeniable, however the emerging research looking at the current design of the digital world is proving it to have negative effects on it’s consumers – with the adolescent population being even more susceptible to the changes in our digital habits.

The concept sometimes referred to as Big Data (Cezar & Carlos, 2023), describes the increasing amount of data and content available to us online at an ever increasing rate, and our cognitive architecture is struggling to withstand the constant influx of information (Sweller et al., 1998). In this paper, we discuss the concept of Cognitive Overload in relation to frequent social media usage, and how it can be the basis for further negative consequences related to extensive time spend in the digital world, such as anxiety, social comparison and low self-esteem. 

The types of activities users are engaging in online affects whether it has a positive or a negative effect on their mental well-being. Those that engage with it in an intended positive way, by creating content or interacting with others tend to benefit from their exposure to the digital media. Passive consumption, doomscrolling and antisocial activities such as leaving anonymous negative comments usually corresponds with higher levels of anxiety and depression.

With the adolescent population becoming the main consumer of digital content, the design of

it has to adapt. There are gaps in research regarding frequent social media usage and it’s long-term effects on psychological well-being due to the rapid progression of technological developments, but a foundation exists and it is already becoming a base for new systematic changes to create a safer, less invasive and overwhelming space.

Understanding Human Cognition

To begin to understand the concept of Cognitive Overload we first need to understand the Cognitive Load Theory (Sweller, 2011). The Cognitive Load theory focuses on how the architecture of the human brain is built to process and hold information influencing the learning outcome. As well as it’s limitations in the sense of having limited capacity and the ability to only hold a limited amount of information within a specific timeframe. Our working memory is able to hold roughly 7 chunks of information, or 2 to 4 if also simultaneously doing a task, for approximately 20 seconds at a time (Sweller, Ayres, & Kalyuga, 2011).

First step in comprehending human cognition is understanding that it is divided into sections to organise the knowledge and the experiences we gain. According to Sweller et al. (2011)  the types of knowledge our cognitive mind has can be separated in to two groups:

biologically primary and secondary knowledges (there are more in-depth groups but that is not relevant to this topic). Biologically primary knowledge implies the inherited, evolved knowledge we all have acquired such as recognising faces or picking up our native language instinctively without much effort. It is an umbrella for many various skills and knowledges we have and can also be divided into smaller sub-sections (e.g. Social skills, group dynamics, facial expressions). Biologically secondary knowledge is heavily reliant on being given instruction and that is what differentiates it from primary knowledge. Secondary knowledge is something we learn for cultural reasons, such as reading or writing conference papers (Sweller, Ayres, & Kalyuga, 2011).

Using technology is almost becoming primary knowledge to many young people, but being faced with higher amounts of information that is more demanding of our cognitive processing capabilities can lead to Cognitive Overload (Cao & Sun, 2018).  Using a high level of attention for continuous periods of time can also lead to Cognitive Fatigue or force us to engage in Split-Attention (Cezar & Carlos, 2023). When we are presented with information that is split and incoherent, requiring us to focus on multiple aspects at once leading to splitattention and reducing our cognitive capability to retain any of the information presented. Similarly to what we experience daily online, a flow of unrelated content fighting to grab our attention (Velasquez, 2020).

Social Media and the Distortion of Reality

Social media networks have become an integral component of our daily lives, approximately 64% of the global population are active on at least one social network (DataReportal, 2025). Social media platforms and the businesses on them use a variety of methods to make us stay online longer, creating a new outlet for addiction (Young, Pistner, O’Mara, & Buchanan, 1999). The three main attributes are – a reward system, sometimes known as The Slot

Machine effect (Kuss & Griffiths , 2017),  where our curiosity leads us to keep scrolling to see what is next; our desire to feel validated and relevant by introducing likes or components like streaks; and finally, eliminating the reason to stop scrolling, like continuous explore pages rather then having to click “next page” (Kuss & Griffiths , 2017).

Our studies and jobs are online, we consume entertainment through streaming services and try to stay connected with people through social media. But the algorithms favour beautiful, curated, positive content. Social networks want to appear positive so they will push idealistic, edited, “highlighted” content above other more realistically portrayed content (Appel et al., 2016). This leads to false perceptions of reality in those that consume the content and inevitably start comparing their lives to what they see online. It is hard for us as humans to not crave what others have and according to Leon Festinger’s (1954)  Social Comparison theory we tend to base our self worth by comparing ourselves to the majority, what they look like or what their opinions are.

The use of social media has a direct correlation with social comparison levels and cognitive overload, which has been linked to increase in depression and anxiety rates especially amongst younger generations (Yan et al., 2024). Facebook’s and Instagram’s features like stories allow you to stay as personally connected as ever, yet at the same time provide the perfect scenario for social comparison (Jiang & Ngien, 2020).  Social comparison can happen with anyone, but it most commonly happens with those you share similar interests or social groups with, e.g. Your friend group or those you follow on social media (Festinger, 1954). 

Psychological Consequences: Why Everyone Is Anxious 

Multiple studies over the years have proven that there is a direct correlation between high social media usage and levels of anxiety or depression (Yan et al., 2024). A study done by Lin et al. (2016), further supports  the idea of the correlation between the recent rise in depression, suicide rates and the increase of social media usage by the adolescent population. A large section of which is going through the process of forming their identity and understanding societal norms online rather than through real life interactions. 

The seemingly controlled environment of social media is most likely  the biggest attraction to young adults, especially those with underlying mental health problems such as depression, who would prefer socialising from behind  screen rather than face-to-face (Lin et al., 2016).  The sort of activities the person is indulging in online matters when understanding whether it has a negative or a positive effect on their mental health. Those that engage in positive interactions (e.g. Liking posts, posting positive comments, keeping up with old friends, creating content) tend to feel more satisfied with their use of social media, potentially because they are getting the social interactions they are expecting from it – Positive interactions (Zhang et al., 2023). On the other hand, those that engage in negative behaviour online or just passively consume content, tend to experience the negative side effects of social media, such as anxiety and depression more (Gerson et al., 2016). 

Digital Overconsumption in Adolescence

According to a study done by Duggan and Smith in 2013, over 90% of the adolescence population was active on social media, and we can only expect the numbers to have drastically increased since then. Using a computer for prolonged periods of time, or general exposure to the internet was known to have negative effects on sleep and therefore mental health, way before the rise of social media (Nakshine et al., 2022). Prolonged usage of social media, especially prior to bedtime, as well as high emotional  involvement with social media closely correlates with poor self-esteem, and therefore to higher levels of anxiety and depression in teens (Woods & Scott, 2016). A study done by Al-Samarraie et al. (2021) also discusses the relationship between excessive social media use or addiction (including dating sites, online gambling and other online tools) with poor social or interpersonal skills. The adolescence stage of life is already complicated, and is especially challenging for the mental health developmental process, incorporating access to social media can have detrimental effects on the younger’s population digital well-being (Virós-Martín et al., 2024) and overall psychological well-being. 

Platforms like TikTok provide immediate, fast paced, addictive and highly stimulating content, which is designed as a form of entertainment rather than to engage in person-toperson or person-to-creator interactions (Lin, 2023). Networks like Facebook, Instagram or X, can encourage interactions between users and content, allowing them to contribute and become encouraged to create, which could lead to positive effects (Naslund et al., 2020). On the other hand, the increase in popularity of social medias like TikTok, where the algorithm is encouraging  users to passively consume for the sake of entertainment, rather than to create or pause and interact with the presented content, further strengthens its addictive qualities.

The negative effects of social media on adolescent mental development such as cognitive fatigue and overload, social comparison, low self-esteem, anxiety, depression and urge to be isolated, interfere with a significant part of a adolescent development- real life interpersonal interactions (Yang et al., 2022). There is a high risk of digital technologies displacing the importance of in-person interactions or other tasks such as learning, engaging in physical activities or creating (OECD, 2023).

The Need For Intervention 

There is a lack of studies discussing the correlation between social media use and adolescent mental health due the recency of the topic and the rapid increase in social media usage. However, there is enough evidence to see the undeniable relationship between the two, and research is being done to determine appropriate strategies to reduce the negative impacts of social media exposure. To make a difference and prevent the escalation of the negative effects, interference has to come from parents, clinicians and policy makers in the government. Parents need to be further educated on potential risks of excessive social media usage, understand the signs and encourage in-person interactions. Clinicians need to improve their abilities to identify social media related mental health issues, and develop practices to reduce the causes, working together with governments (Bozzola et al., 2019). Users with over

7 hours of daily screen time display more of the negative effects than users with 1 or less hour of screen time, further proving the need for systematic intervention – most likely in the form of screen time limits set for underage social media users (Twenge & Campbell, 2018).

Without intervention the future generations are left to figure out a new digital landscape with no support or guidelines. This highlights the importance of teaching digital literacy, digital literacy does not just include the ability to read the presented information, but to further evaluate it, to challenge it and it’s potential biases, the media it’s presented through and it’s general purpose (Bawden, 2008). It emphasises the importance of approaching digital information with caution and having the skills to interpret it correctly, and “the ability to be conscious about what’s going on around us-and not be passive and vulnerable” – Thoman (1999). Possession of digital media literacy skills aids with our capability to interact with such large amounts of information without feeling overstimulated or being affected by social comparison, by filtering out irrelevant or upsetting information (Lim et al., 2024).  

China has been fighting increased social media and phone usage in younger children by implementing policies that set boundaries for screen times  and content showed to younger populations, and engage the policy makers, app developers and parents to co-operate by following the provided guidelines (Yang, 2023). The guidelines are very specific, for example limiting children under 8 to under 40 minutes of screen time and content topics limited to hobbies or educational (China Law Translate, 2023). 

Highlighting the importance of digital literacy and considering limiting the average screen time can lead to a return in prioritising interpersonal communications and improvement of overall well-being. We cannot get rid of the concept of social media, yet we can reframe it a as tool made to aid us, not a replacement for the integral human connection and experience, and gain control back of our attention, cognition and well-being.

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