Your image in social networks: when your life depends on a like
The latest incidents of suicides influencers have opened the debate on the use that young people make of social networks and the image that they project in them. Those who become social idols "work" in their profiles the image of a life based on a psychosocial well-being that, poorly managed, can have consequences in two directions.
The first affects their own influencers, because feeling exposed continuously can develop in them the need to lead a "real" life distorted and based on appearance. And the second, about their fans, who receive a distorted image and away from the reality that, however, they become idyllic and that, when trying to imitate it, it generates in them feelings of frustration and sadness with their own life.
The phenomenon of image on social networks, which has led many young people to the extreme of your life depends on a like, is today the object of study and treatment in many psychology cabinets. Specifically, the psychologist Raquel García Zubiaga, from the INAE center, reviews the symptoms of mismanagement of one's image in social networks of young people and how family members can talk about it and deal with it.
When life depends on a 'like'
Irritability, lack of acceptance, problems of empathy ... No adolescent is exempt from being a victim of mismanagement of his own image. "There does not have to be a psychological problem hidden behind this action, "says the psychologist.The search for models in which to identify is a common behavior throughout history, derived from living in society.
"The problem arises when the need to show intimacy in social networks and overexpose to feel good increases continuously, making your happiness depend on you to follow or like others what you have published. " According to the doctor, this can trigger distortion between the personal "I" and the "I" that she decides to show, and can lead the adolescent to publish inappropriate and more risky content that captures the attention of more followers. The consequences: problems of irritability, lack of acceptance, lack of empathy, sadness or even behavior or relational.
6 tips to avoid that your life depends on a 'like'
How can parents intervene in the use that young people make of their image in social networks? According to experts, it is important to have an active role in education in the use of social networks of children from an early age and for this, the psychologist Raquel García Zubiaga, gives us 6 tips:
1. Mark limits from the dialogue. 'Always', 'never', 'everything' or 'nothing', are too forceful expressions that we should avoid by setting certain limits in the use of these channels if we want to avoid that the younger ones feel attacked. Consensus with them when setting limits is also fundamental, and will allow parents to find out and analyze what their most immediate demands and needs are.
2. A moderate control. Once the limits have been agreed, it is important to keep track of the published photos, the followers and the people they follow, as well as the time they spend connected, since these parameters are the main indicators of management and how they use networks.
3. Teach by giving example. Parents are a mirror in which children look at each other, so it is important that they see in them what is the correct management of social networks. If parents spend hours on the Internet, or overexpose their lives and their children's lives, they will repeat the behavior.
4. Encourage leisure outside of technology. We must avoid the child replacing certain aspects of their daily lives by the use of social networks. It is important that parents check that areas such as studies are not left aside because they are mobile, that they stop losing interest in activities they previously liked, etc. Therefore, experts recommend promoting hobbies and other activities within their education free of technology since very small.
5. Do not leave out fundamental values. The family is the source from which values such as tolerance, honesty or empathy start. If we inculcate this teaching, it will be easier to avoid and address the problems arising from the use of social networks.
6. Work self-esteem continuously. Reinforcing self-esteem and self-confidence is fundamental for people who expose their lives in networks to better fit the possible oscillations of influence or criticism.
The most important thing is that parents lead their children in the correct use of these channels through a communication between both parties based on respect, empathy, love and understanding
Raquel García Zubiaga. Psychologist at the INAE center.TopDoctors
