How Facebook makes you distrusting and miserable

New research finds that exposure to homophobic, racist or misogynistic content on social networks including Facebook 'may threaten subjective well-being

New research finds that social networks including Facebook “may threaten subjective well-being” by eroding a user’s trust in the rest of society with exposure to homophobic, racist or misogynistic content.

Scientists from the Sapienza University of Rome and the Institut National de la Statistique et des Études Économiques du Grand-Duché du Luxembourg explored survey data from 50,000 people in 24,000 Italian households which looked at internet and social network use, as well as self-reported levels of happiness and self-esteem.

They found that social networks increased the risk of being exposed to “offensive behaviours and hate speech”, which could have a harmful effect on people’s mental wellbeing.

“In online discussions with unknown others, individuals more easily indulge in aggressive and disrespectful behaviours. Online networks also are a fertile ground for spreading harmful, offensive, or controversial contents often lying at the verge between free speech and hate speech,” they said.

Posted in: Social Media