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Generation Social

Curated & Moderated by:
Anna-Kynthia Bousdoukou
Τhe SNF Dialogues discussed social media and young people’s mental health as part of the 2022 SNF Nostos Conference dedicated to Health.
When
Friday 24 June 2022, at 17:00
Where
Alternative Stage, Greek National Opera
Dialoguers
Beatrice Nyamwenge Okech Bio Giannis Vassilopoulos Bio Joy Fan Bio Mary-Ann Nobele Bio Thibeaux Hirsh Bio
Live
Social Media
Youth
Society
Technology

The power of social media and its impact on the mental health of young people were the focus of the 52nd Dialogues discussion, which took place on Friday, 24 June, on the Greek National Opera Alternative Stage at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center. Audience members and speakers from every corner of the globe talked openly about the time they spend on social media and how a like or a comment can affect them.

The Dialogues discussion featured the SNF Nostos Youth Advisory Committee, a group of young people from around the world who were actively involved in shaping the agenda of the 2022 SNF Nostos Conference.

I’ve found social media to provide a sort of distorted reality as a result of the algorithms, the feedback loops, and for myself it has resulted in a lower general appreciation for life than when I’m off social media.
Thibeaux Hirsh, SNF Nostos Youth Advisory Committee Member

Thibeaux Hirsh on Generation Social

I, on the other hand, have a very good relationship with social media. And I think it’s because of how intentional I am in terms of my use of social media. I think I’m very particular about who I follow, why I’m keeping up with them, what I’m taking from that experience, and how they affect me. To a certain degree, we’re all influenced. It might not be direct, we might not acknowledge it immediately, but slowly things do begin to influence you.
Mary-Ann Nobele, SNF Nostos Youth Advisory Committee Member

Mary-Ann Nobele on Generation Social

At the start, I was thinking that social media is just another outlet for news. But it’s not like television, newspapers, because the thing that changes on social media is the algorithms behind it, because they present to you what they know you like to see. The basic element that brings that information to you is not the same for everyone. It’s based on what you want to think.
Giannis Vassilopoulos, SNF Youth Advisory Committee Member

Giannis Vassilopoulos on Generation Social

"I’m from the United States and I think something that we see a lot, especially currently and throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, is that we have a lot of this misinformation. We have a lot of this unverified, un-peer-reviewed information that is wandering unfettered, especially in the realm of social media. It’s very hard to know who to believe or what is real, especially when you can edit all these photos and have that perfection in photos. For me it’s something that really is terrifying,” said SNF Nostos Youth Advisory Committee Member, Joy Fan.

Joy Fan on Generation Social

"I would say that my relationship with social media is healthy, in the sense that I’ve turned my platforms into this really happy space for myself…. For me, it’s, one, a learning platform, and also my window into the outside world, because you learn about so much that’s happening all over the world from social media. I get to find out about what’s happening in L.A. while I’m in Nairobi” added Beatrice Nyamwenge Okech, SNF Nostos Youth Advisory Committee Member.

Beatrice Nyamwenge Okech on Generation Social

Every time you get a like, your brain actually responds to it. It feels good. You get a charge. After a while your brain needs more and more dopamine. Social media does have a positive when we are looking for community. However there is the dark side. We have studies that have shown, particularly during Covid-19, that young people under the age of 24 who use social media more than eight hours a day - it’s defined as problematic internet usage - can have ill effects. Not on everyone; that’s the impressive part. It turns out that if you have existing depression, or you have ADHD, it is toxic. It makes your symptoms much worse if you are on social media eight hours or more a day.

Anna Kynthia Bousdoukou and a guest speaker at the SNF Dialogues event.

Harold Koplewicz, Founding President and Medical Director of the Child Mind Institute 

Harold Koplewicz on Generation Social

The audience on Generation Social

Highlights

Promo Video

Just before the closing of the SNF Nostos Conference on Health, the SNF Dialogues also welcomed 55 students from all over Greece, through a valuable collaboration with The Tipping Point. Doctors, psychologists, neuroscientists, bioscientists, academics, nutritionists, and other experts interacted virtually with students from 20 high schools across Greece, embarking on a broad dialogue on health, prevention, care, and awareness that concluded on the Dialogues stage. The students participated in the Health Literacy program, implemented by The Tipping Point with a grant from the SNF in collaboration with iMEdD (incubator for Media Education and Development), as part of the 2022 SNF Nostos Conference.

The SNF Dialogues are curated and moderated by Anna-Kynthia Bousdoukou and are held through the journalism non-profit organization iMEdD (incubator for Media Education and Development).