{"id":184806,"date":"2025-07-21T09:19:23","date_gmt":"2025-07-21T09:19:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.iium.edu.my\/?p=184806"},"modified":"2025-07-21T09:19:58","modified_gmt":"2025-07-21T09:19:58","slug":"how-social-media-brings-harm-to-children","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.iium.edu.my\/?p=184806","title":{"rendered":"HOW SOCIAL MEDIA BRINGS HARM TO CHILDREN"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By, Mohammad Amirul Hakim bin Baharudin<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Social media can have several harmful effects on children. One of the most significant impacts
is on their mental health. Frequent use of platforms like Instagram, Snapchat, and Facebook
has been linked to increased rates of depression and anxiety among children and teens. These
platforms often present curated and unrealistic images, leading to body dissatisfaction and low
self-esteem, particularly among teenage girls. Additionally, exposure to screens and constant
notifications can disrupt sleep patterns, contributing to poor sleep quality and duration, which
is linked to emotional health issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Safety is another major concern when it comes to children using social media. Predators often
target children on these platforms, and cyberbullying is a common issue. Nearly one in three
teenage girls have been approached by adults asking for inappropriate content. Children are
also frequently exposed to inappropriate content, including pornography and violent material,
which can be harmful to their development. Furthermore, social media is designed to be
addictive, which can rewire children’s brains and affect their ability to focus and manage
impulses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Furthermore, the detrimental impact of cyberbullying is worsen during periods of increased
online interaction, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Borualogo and Casas note a rise in
cyberbullying incidents coinciding with school closures, suggesting that while physical
interactions were curtailed, online interactions increased, leading to further opportunities for
bullying behavior (Borualogo & Casas, 2023). The global trend towards higher rates of
cyberbullying is echoed in various studies, indicating that the prevalence of online
victimization among youth has risen dramatically over time, affecting children across diverse
settings (\u03a4\u03c3\u03af\u03c4\u03c3\u03b9\u03ba\u03b1 et al., 2015; – & Yadav, 2024). In a way, this can affect the health of the
children in terms of mental and growth significantly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moreover, excessive electronic media exposure, which is common in this digital age, has been
linked to behavioral problems in children. Poulain et al. found correlations between high usage
of electronic media and the emergence of behavioral difficulties in preschoolers, suggesting
that inappropriate screen time can hinder social development and impact emotional well-being<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Poulain et al., 2018). Such findings underscore the need for parents and guardians to
implement monitoring strategies regarding media consumption and online interactions to
prevent the children from using media excessively<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In summary, the intersection of social media usage and childhood development reveals
alarming trends regarding cyberbullying and its substantial mental health implications. The
literature consistently emphasizes the necessity for comprehensive educational initiatives,
vigilant parental involvement, and community support to foster a safer digital environment for
children. The evidence indicates that as children become more enmeshed in these digital
platforms, without adequate support and education on cyberbullying, their vulnerabilities are
likely to increase, leading to serious emotional and psychological distress.***<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By, Mohammad Amirul Hakim bin Baharudin Social media can have several harmful effects on children. One of the most significant impactsis on their mental health.… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":239,"featured_media":184807,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,773],"tags":[],"nelio_content":{"isAutoShareEnabled":true,"autoShareEndMode":"never","automationSources":{"useCustomSentences":false,"customSentences":[]},"followers":[257,239],"suggestedReferences":[],"efiUrl":"","efiAlt":"","highlights":[],"permalinkQueryArgs":[]},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/news.iium.edu.my\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/harmful092721-1500x632-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iium.edu.my\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184806"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iium.edu.my\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iium.edu.my\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iium.edu.my\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/239"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iium.edu.my\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=184806"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/news.iium.edu.my\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184806\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":184809,"href":"https:\/\/news.iium.edu.my\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184806\/revisions\/184809"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iium.edu.my\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/184807"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iium.edu.my\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=184806"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iium.edu.my\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=184806"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iium.edu.my\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=184806"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}