Tagged With "Technology Use"
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App User testing - Supporting people recovering from problem gambling
Hi everyone, A research team at St. Michael’s Hospital has been working with the community to design and develop a self-management app to help people in their recovery from problem gambling. We are entering the user testing phase. The purpose of user testing is to help inform the next phase of app design. We are asking people to answer a 16-question survey. We would greatly appreciate it if you could share the survey link ( https://redcap.utoronto.ca/surveys/?s=CYPWHAAJCHHRCK9D ) with people...
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In the news: (CBC) Ford government could lose $2.8B over 5 years in online gambling bet, confidential report warns
A CBC article published today outlines how the Ontario government could lose up to $550 million in annual revenue with the arrival of the online gambling market in Ontario ($2.8 billion over the next five years). The projections, outlined in a private and confidential report to one of Canada's largest gaming companies, suggests that the province is set to lose money due to individuals spending more money on online gambling and moving away from land-based casino gambling (the taxation rate is...
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[Online workshop opportunity, March 10th 2022] Fundamentals of gambling and gaming: Effective assessment and treatment planning
The Gambling, Gaming, and Technology Use team is offering a facilitated workshop: Fundamentals of gambling and gaming: Effective assessment and treatment planning on March 10th from 13:00 to 15:00 hours EST. This training is best suited to newly qualified clinicians as well as students who are currently working directly with clients, however, successful completion of the Fundamentals of Gambling and Gaming (FUN-GG) course is a prerequisite. FUN-GG is a short, self-directed course that...
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Webinar Replay! ‘Swipe Sesh’: Exploring the Impacts of Dating Apps on Mental Health among Adults
On February 10, 2022, GGTU kicked off part 1 of a new webinar series called The Impacts of Digital Technologies on Mental Health and Addictions . This series will feature 3 standalone yet interconnected webinars, each taking on a different topic in relation to technology use and mental health and/or addiction-related impacts. Part 1 featured Dr. Treena Orchard (Western University) presenting engaging new content called, ‘Swipe Sesh’: Exploring the Impacts of Dating Apps on Mental Health...
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Webinar Today - Registration is free! ConnexOntario (Discover Mental Health, Addiction and Problem Gambling Services): A brief history and overview.
So much has transpired in mental health and addictions over the last two years during the COVID-19 pandemic and there is much to learn from our colleagues at ConnexOntario. Anne Counter, Director of System Navigation and Information Services will be taking us through the history of ConnexOntario, providing us a refresher of their services, as well as sharing current data in regards to trends specific to gambling and technology use. We will also learn about the impact of COVID-19 on the...
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Supporting African Caribbean Black (ACB) Women with Gambling Concerns: A Best Practices Guide for Professionals – A wonderful collaborative article and a must read from the team at Jean Tweed and their project partners.
As February comes to a close with us celebrating and honoring Black History Month , we are only mindful at GGTU to ensure we send out a tribute to the Jean Tweed article, spearheaded by Angela Allen. This well written guide needs to be shared within our community since it shines a light on their wonderful research and helps us better understand and support African Caribbean Black (ACB) women with gambling concerns. After a thorough literature review and survey being conducted, the results...
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GGTU Training Needs Assessment
The Gambling, Gaming and Technology Use (GGTU) program at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health creates training products and resources for clinicians working in the area of addictions and mental health. We would love to hear from you about how we can serve your training needs better. Your participation in this survey helps us continue to deliver high-quality products and support. This survey should take approximately 5 minutes and will remain open until Thursday March 24 th at 5 p.m.
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EENet Connect wants to hear from you!
It is that time of year again and we would like to hear from you! What do you like about EENet Connect? What do you want improved? By providing us with your feedback, you can help us make the platform more useful and easier to use. The deadline for completing the survey is April 1st, so we hope to hear from you soon! The link to the survey is: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/EENet_Connect
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The Common Sense Census: Media Use by Tweens and Teens, 2021-22
Common Sense Media have published their annual report from a large-scale, national survey of U.S teens and tweens on their media use habits. The report compares media use by teens and tweens before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Within the report, the authors present some recommendations for caregivers and parents as well as policymakers about healthy and safe media use for young people. Below are some key findings from the report: Media use in tweens and teens has grown faster since the...
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Re: Social media companies could be held accountable for their negative impacts on children
Curiously following what is going on in the States with social media apps aimed at children and teens... it's a rare issue that seems to get bi-partisan support and traction! The UK is rolling out similar legislation too. This was an interesting article where TikTok and Snapchat in particular were being targeted in the US: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/0...arental-control.html . I think that companies putting the onus on parents with parental controls is a partial solution but also they need...
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Ontario is moving quickly to approve online gambling operators.
Ontario just added private operators for online gaming beginning on April 4 but is already ahead of many US states in terms of the number of approved operators. See article: Ontario Has More Approved Online Gambling Operators Than Most US States
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Social dilemma
The documentary called Social dilemma perfectly depicts the situation of problem technology use in the society now. - It interviews the designers of different social media platforms on how they design the app - It depicts how social media platforms are designed to gain our attention and changes our behavior - It provides ways for us to minimize the influence from social media apps
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Is Social Media Hurting Your Mental Health?
Is Social Media Hurting Your Mental Health? | Bailey Parnell | TEDxRyersonU - YouTube This video focuses on how social media can have long term impacts on our mental health when our usage of it goes unchecked. Bailey Parnell talks about how the content that we consume on social media can cause us to compare our day to day lives to others "highlight reels" on social media, even when other people are individuals that we know. Understanding how these experiences of comparison affect individuals...
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Re: Anxiety, loneliness and Fear of Missing Out: The impact of social media on young people’s mental health
I really liked this article, I think it is an interesting time to be discussing these topics while still being somewhat consumed by Covid restrictions and the world just opening back up to us. I think we can all agree anxiety, loneliness and fear, of missing out have all been very real feelings experienced by almost everyone over the past 2+ years, has social media had any positive effects on anxiety, loneliness, and fear of missing out while young people have been essentially stuck at home.
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Current topics in PTU - Video from WHO
https://theconversation.com/digital-addiction-how-technology-keeps-us-hooked-97499 The above link briefly explores how technology is designed to "keep us hooked." There is a video included from the WHO. This article/video gives a brief explanation on the effects of problem gaming and the criteria for recognizing PTU. They place a focus on the difference between problem gaming disorder, and gaming behaviour. The speaker states how problem gaming disorder can only be diagnosed over time by a...
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Re: Health effects of gaming
You mentioned something that is key in all conversations we have with individuals. Listening to learn about the individual's motivation which in turn leads to varied behaviours. When we gain insight to a person's motivation, whether it is for behaviour modification or otherwise, it helps us as professionals to provide person specific care. Curious, what are your thoughts about the percentage of Americans affected by internet disorder? How do you think Canadians compare?
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Re: Health effects of gaming
This article has fairly recent (2021) stats on prevalence around the world but doesn't separate Canada out from a larger study that included the US, UK, Canada and Germany which showed the same percentage as the above article. Iran apparently has the highest rate and in Korea it is considered a public health crisis. Video Game Addiction Statistics 2021: Is the World Addicted to Video Games? | Healthy Gamer
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Autism, PTU, and Video Game Therapy
Article Jiménez‑Muñoz, L., Peñuelas‑Calvo, I., Calvo‑Rivera, P., Díaz‑Oliván, I., Moreno, M., Baca‑García, E., and Porras‑Segovia, A. (2022). Video Games for the Treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders (2022) 52:169–188. Accessed May 23, 2022 at https://link-springer-com.proxy.library.upei.ca/content/pdf/10.1007/s10803-021-04934-9.pdf How It Relates to Gaming Video game-based interventions were effective in alleviating...
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The Association Between Video Gaming and Psychological Functioning - Journal Entry
Journal article - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01731/full 1. I think it is easy for us to fall into a thinking trap of "all gaming is bad" or that there are no benefits of gaming. This article sheds light on some of the positives of gaming. 2. Researchers did find a medium-sized relation between potentially problematic video game use and poor psychological functioning with regard to general psychological symptoms, maladaptive coping strategies, negative...
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Is Social Media Harming Us? Or Are We Harming Ourselves?
Is Social Media Harming Us? Or Are We Harming Ourselves? This is the question posed by Farzana Qasimi in her TEDTalk "The Dark and Light of Social Media" found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGjBgonFJYU In 12 short minutes, 16-year-old Qasimi makes a number compelling points to further explore who is at fault for how social media impacts our mental health. Qasimi notes: Social media websites were not created with the intention to lower anyone's self esteem, and Social media platforms...
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Commentary - Chinese Video Gaming Policy
The article discusses 1) alleged ineffectiveness, 2) alleged Draconian-ness, and 3) emerging evidence of identifiable benefits. Read on if interested in these aspects of the policy! See article attached.
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Re: Commentary - Chinese Video Gaming Policy
The article discusses 1) alleged ineffectiveness, 2) alleged Draconian-ness, and 3) emerging evidence of identifiable benefits. Read if interested in these aspects of the policy. Reference: Xiao, L.Y. (2022). Reserve your judgement on "Draconian" Chinese video gaming restrictions on children. Commentary on: Draconian policy measures are unlikely to prevent disordered gaming (Colder Carras et al., 2021). Accessed June 3, 2022 at https://www.researchgate.net/p...er_Carras_et_al_2021 (pasted ...
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Re: Phubbing
Wow! This is interesting. I totally agree that using a phone when with someone is like not being fully present. Many of us do this without thinking of the impact of a seemingly trivial action. We do this with other things too, like eating and scrolling, etc. We live in a distracted and multi-tasking world. No judgment but there are implications. We are never fully present in whatever we do and go through all of life never being fully present and then come to the end of life, and wonder where...
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GGTU launches new digital newsletter
Gambling, Gaming and Technology Use has launched a new digital newsletter on our new GGTU website . We also have an online digital assessment survey . We want to hear from you about the topics we should be focusing on, and the types of resources and digital products we should be offering in the year ahead.
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Upcoming Webinar - June 23rd: Launch of the SPRinG App. A self-managing tool for problem gambling/gaming
Quick and friendly reminder to ensure you saved a spot for an upcoming webinar: Join us for this Webinar - We are SPRinG’g into action to help the gambling community. Launch of the SPRinG App - A digital health solution to support self-management of problem gambling. | Gambling, Gaming & Technology Use Community of Interest | EENet Connect
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Webinar Replay! Bridging the Digital Divide to Optimize Health Outcomes and Experiences for Youth
On Thursday July 21, 2022, GGTU hosted the final installment of the three-part webinar series, The Impacts of Digital Technologies on Mental Health and Addictions. Dr. Skye Barbic (UBC/Foundry) and Al Raimundo (Foundry BC) co-presented this latest webinar titled, Bridging the Digital Divide to Optimize Health Outcomes and Experiences for Youth . In this webinar, the speakers described the digital health needs of young people accessing youth mental health services and outlined current ways in...
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Turning off notifications, does it actually help?
With the constant bombardment of notifications from our phones many of us feel the need to distance ourselves from these distracting alerts. So instinctively it makes sense to turn them off so we check our phones less. However, a recent study by Liao and Sundar (2022) presented research that may call into question this practice. The authors used an app to track 138 iPhone users for four days. The app tracked: Whether notifications were turned on or off The number of notifications...
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Re: Reflections on a Webinar Series: The Impacts of Digital Technologies on Mental Health and Addictions
Such a thoughtfully planned and executed series, @Registered Member. I thought they all addressed very interesting areas of our work and I particularly liked Part 3 and getting to hear about all the innovative work Foundry are doing out in BC to ensure youth can contribute to and use such an effective platform to connect with services.
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Reflections on a Webinar Series: The Impacts of Digital Technologies on Mental Health and Addictions
In late 2021, I curated a three-part thematic series of webinars for the Gambling, Gaming and Technology Use (GGTU) program to host in 2022. This series was titled, The Impacts of Digital Technologies on Mental Health and Addictions . Each webinar invited different experts to present on a topic that demonstrates key intersections between technology use and well-being. The series was comprised of: Part 1: ‘Swipe sesh’: Exploring the impacts of dating apps on mental health among adults ,...
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Re: Reflections on a Webinar Series: The Impacts of Digital Technologies on Mental Health and Addictions
Thank you, Marie-Claire! Especially for your expert technical and planning support throughout. I agree about the presentation that showcased Foundry's innovative approach. New app development benefits greatly from the meaningful inclusion of those who will use such tools in their design and promotion.
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State of the Research: Gaming Disorder (YouTube)
This 12-minute video (Youtube) is a great, accessible summary of the research into Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD). The presenter discusses the current debate surrounding the diagnosis criteria of IGD, concerns from some researchers and clinicians, along with the corresponding research papers. This is a visual, interactive way of accessing this information that can often feel quite technical and dry. We cover similar topics and discussions in our Introduction to Problem Technology Use...
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GGTU digital newsletter: September Issue
Check out our new digital newsletter for September 2022. It features recent news articles, statistics/research, conferences, education and training, all happening in our sector. We also have our online survey for digital products we plan to launch in the upcoming months, so your feedback is so appreciated. Check out our "Meet the Team" section too, where we showcase work done by our team. In our second instalment of Meet the Team, we introduce you to Marie-Claire Conlin, Education...
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Screen Time - effects on the social, cognitive and emotional development of children and youth
https://informedfutures.org/wp...tive-development.pdf ; The article speaks to the effects of ‘screen time’ on the emotional, social and cognitive development of children and youth, including gaming, social media, and educational type virtual activities – both positive and negative. It mentions some emerging evidence on structural changes within the brain associated with increased use and how it relates to non-educational screen time. It mentions a factor around ‘stimulation overload’...
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Is Facebook creating "iDisorders" ?
1. This article dated back in January 2013, focusing on the technological use of various means and media on symptomology of mood disorders and examines the impact of attitudes toward technology and multitasking in addition to tech related anxiety around the inability to check devices as frequently as desired. 2. "iDIsorders" was defined as "...the negative relationship between technology usage and psychological health", suggesting implications around heightened usage being negative. 3. In...
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What are your training needs related to Gambling, Gaming and Technology use?
The Gambling, Gaming, and Technology Use (GGTU) team creates training products and resources for clinicians working in the area of addictions and mental health. We would love to hear from you through our survey about how we can better serve your training needs. Your participation in our survey allows us to continue to deliver high-quality knowledge mobilization, learning enrichment resources, and programs. The survey should take approximately 10-15 minutes. All survey participants will be...
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Dispelling Myths Around Youth Gambling
When it comes to gambling, there are many misconceptions — and perhaps the biggest one is that youth don’t (or can’t) gamble. That’s because we often associate gambling with playing poker or blackjack in a casino. But gambling takes many different forms. In fact, 68 per cent of Ontario youth said they participated in a gambling activity in the past 12 months, according to YMCA’s Youth Gambling Awareness Program (YGAP) Youth for Youth Digital Media Awareness Campaign in 2020. YGAP defines...
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Leisure time activities in adolescents predict problematic technology use
The problematic use of technology of children and adolescents is becoming a growing problem. Research has shown that excessive technology use predicts a variety of psychological and physical health problems. The aim of this study was to analyze the role of leisure time activities (structured and unstructured) in adolescents as a predictor of problematic technology use. Participants were 7723 adolescents, of which 55% were girls, from four Spanish-speaking countries (Chile, Spain, Mexico, and...
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Re: Leisure time activities in adolescents predict problematic technology use
Interesting findings. This makes me wonder how adolescent "unstructured leisure time" has changed historically since the internet/computers entered the scene. These days, without structure, adolescents seem drawn to tech use because of how easily accessible it is, and how rewarding it can feel in the moment. I wonder whether there's something to the idea of promoting "unstructured non-tech use time". I know how thinly stretched parents can feel, and how parents can feel the urge to drive...
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IPTU Fall 2023 TEDtalk- Technology Addiction and What you can do about it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0adeZP6aDQw TEDtalk- Technology Addiction and What you can do about it. Ben Halpert TEDxSaintThomas (2015) Entertaining Talk about h ow society is guiding children from infancy to adolescence raised on technology- in many aspects of their lives and ways to balance technology use to prevent overuse and addiction. This is very applicable to the course as it highlights common themes that people may take for granted without considering the consequences. Ben...
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Re: Leisure time activities in adolescents predict problematic technology use
Really interesting insights Sharon! I think this might be worth thinking about how society has changed. It used to be unstructured time when technology wasn't as prevalent meant kids would go outside and play with the neighbors or their friends and learn how to socialize/interact in person there. With the rise of technology, it's less effort to just socialize at home on your phone/computer for the same effect and there might be fewer kids out and about to go and socialize in person even if...
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Re: IPTU Fall 2023 TEDtalk- Technology Addiction and What you can do about it
Thanks for sharing that Ted Talk. As a parent of a toddler, this hit home! It boggles my mind how tech is being promoted as a great way to engage your toddler... those potty examples were hilarious. The research on toddlers using tech is pretty clear... steer clear as much as possible. I like this presenters suggestion about starting the conversation about tech early from parents to kids, and keep it going. Parents are ultimately responsible for teaching and helping kids set boundaries with...
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Re: "Tech execs protect their kids from their own products."
So relatable Sharon. Yes those working directly in their field of expertise know the problems that arise and are more apt to do more prevention. I'm not surprised to hear tech experts, shield their children from devices. With any field of expertise this exists. Bankers, know too well about the scams, and can thwart many of these issues - especially for on-line issues. Doctors, probably so careful about germs/disease prevention and do things that common public doesn't. Tech and Security...
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Re: IPTU Fall 2023 TEDtalk- Technology Addiction and What you can do about it
Thanks Sharon. I also thought his examples were funny but seriously relatable. Tech has advanced and been integrated in our lives too quickly to be able to navigate it. It is great when people makes suggestions on how to avoid problems and do harm reduction- especially for parents.
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IPTU Fall 2023: Social media gets teens hooked while feeding aggression and impulsivity, and researchers think they know why
https://www.cbc.ca/news/health...rain-nov14-1.7029406 Dr. Murthy, US Surgeon General identifies social media as an important driver in the youth mental health crisis. On average, women 18-22 in Canada 56% would be considered "clinically addicted" to their phones - use disrupts sleep, learning, relationships. This is true for about a third of men of the same age group. Changes to the brain including decreased serotonin hypothesized. This matters since there are many poor mental health...
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Re: Digital media: Promoting healthy screen use in school-aged children and adolescents
generally speaking the benefits outweigh the risks in matters of technology. Yet i am concerned it dehumanizes us ,in particular the young , formative brains of children and adolescents. They live in a virtual world , which is disconnected from the real one. The technology can be cold and impersonal. I am going to a northern Ontario hospital for locums. There they had a nice program for local artists , be they patients , visitors , doctors , nurses etc. On a big wall , they were exposing...
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Technology Use to Address Loneliness among Older Adults
This research study is about addressing loneliness and social isolation among older adults. It was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic to measure the impact of technology to address loneliness and social isolation. The results indicate a need for technology-assisted interventions to be designed and delivered with older adult’s values, motivations and capabilities in mind. The main findings of the study indicate: - Addressing loneliness and social isolation among older adults was a key...
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How does phone use effect us?
I found this video interesting because it doesn't just touch on what is happening in our brains that is changing due to phone use, but it also talks about the change in our physical appearance due to phone use. I found the very first fact very interesting that out of the 7 billion people on earth 6 billion have a phone and only 4.5 billion have access to a toilet. This also made me wonder if these were mobile phones or if this was also regular phones as I felt this number was rather high. I...
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What social media does to our brains?
I chose the video below because it clearly talks about how social media and our phones are feeding our dopamine fixes. This is what makes us continually look at our phones. I was also very interested in how he said the algorithms of social media are very smart in the way they keep us wanting to look at social media. This is almost an uphill battle. We may want to stop and look away however our brain and body are telling us "No we like it keep watching", the creators behind these apps are...
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Re: What social media does to our brains?
Recently, I was surprised to learn that there are teams of psychologists involved in social media development and ongoing maintenance, in a similar way that they are involved in video game creation. Social media is designed to be engaging, and uses psychology to keep us in a state of constantly wanting more. It's wild!
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Social Media during COVID
This study explored social media's role in feelings of fear during COVID. 86% reported fear or panic (many females) regarding health information (misinformation) that was posted on social media. Levels of fear response differed by age and gender with more females reporting higher levels of fear, which can have implications on mental health.