BENGALURU: Facebook’s trial programme to hide the number of ‘likes’ a user gets may seem a tiny step towards ensuring better mental health of its users. Experts at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS) said this programme has a huge potential for research.
“The number of likes, shares and followers affect users’ mental health and we have seen an increase in cases of anxiety, depression and loneliness due to them. Such a programme can definitely boost users’ mental wellbeing,” said Dr Manoj Kumar Sharma, Professor of Clinical Psychology, NIMHANS, who works exclusively with people who are addicted to technology at the institute’s SHUT Clinic (Service for Healthy use of Technology).
According to him, if social media giants like Instagram and Facebook are acknowledging this fact, it means a lot of thought and evidence has gone into this idea. “NIMHANS sees many patients who are disconnected from the real world, and believe that getting acknowledged on social media is the only way to connect to the real world,” he said.
Recounting such a case, Dr Mahesh R Gowda of Spandana Hospital said, “There was a client who always compared her achievements depending on the number of likes she got, as opposed to the number of likes her friend got. She became so obsessed that it killed her self-esteem and she became severely depressed.”
In order to prevent further damage, her family took away her phone, but that shattered her. “She sought validation online. However, there must be an alternative to the validation she sought, or it could become more dangerous,” he said.
Mental health experts said that Facebook’s move was definitely a good effort and would help people, but one has to also look at the possible repercussions. Dr Manoj said, “This could force users to take to alternatives like TikTok or Snapchat. The purpose of the experiment could fail.”
Dr Ashwini A, counsellor at a private hospital who has dealt with teenagers with issues like low self-esteem and a disconnect from peers due to seeking validation on social media, said that these companies should remember that social media is designed to promote comparison.
“It takes just a few minutes on these platforms to find a number of people who are evidently better looking or more successful than you, leaving you feeling inadequate and unworthy. So there is a good chance that comments could become the new likes,” Dr Ashwini said. “While it was easier to like or ignore a post, there is a possibility that comments would become a stronger indication of how people are interacting. This could be even more dangerous as a comment can only be an emoji or lengthy answer, which can have negative and positive connotations. It can be more adaptable or disgusting than likes,” she said.