Social media is a part of the internet that continues to rise in popularity as it allows “social interaction among individuals in virtual communities and networks in which they create, share or exchange information and ideas” (Carlson et al., 2016). In recent years, social media reports have been all about cutting down and more about spending less time on blogs, becoming more mindful of the habits of social media, and putting less personal information in the public domain. Social networking was usually used to fill up free time, to stay up to date with current events for fun and entertainment, and most often used to keep in contact with friends and family.
However, things changed in 2020. As the number of covid cases around the world increased, most parts of the world went into lockdown. The pace with which the world was consumed by the pandemic, along with the amount of communication, content and data produced on a daily basis, can present the healthcare professional who focuses on social networking with many problems. In the initial stages of the outbreak, the only sources of information accessible were from the internet and social media, prior to structured publications or webinars. Sharing/re-tweeting is a method by which original material is circulated to people on social media that can be passed on hundreds or thousands of times within days to gain momentum.
This changed the way people perceived social media. As recorded by a coronavirus study, at the beginning of April, just under half of consumers said they were spending more on social media. Latest findings show that the most common use for globally logging into social media was at 36 percent with its main use being to keep up with news and current affairs. The kids of Generation Z ranging from 18 to 24 year olds found that during such tough times connecting with family through social media gave them a sense of comfort and 24% believed social media had bootesed their moods and their general well being whilst 34% felt the negative effects of social media.
During such crucial times, it was seen that many people experienced fear, grief and distress. Studies have shown that more than 70 percent say they are actually experiencing higher stress levels due to COVID-19, and 57 percent say their mental well-being has deteriorated. In addition, 79 percent say they experience “stress” monthly or more often, with 28 percent saying that at least every week they feel this way, and 11 percent say that this occurs regularly. Among those who say social media has been beneficial, the majority (69 percent) say this is because it helps them to communicate with friends and family; and 66 percent say it has also served as a diversion and a useful tool to pass the time: 66 percent listed increased boredom as a problem during the crisis (Gao et al., 2020).
In terms of morbidity and mortality, both loneliness and social isolation may have significant adverse effects (Hajek & König, 2020). A study conducted by Koh & Liew in 2020 aimed to examine the impact covid 19 had on mental health. This was done by examining the expression of loneliness on twitter by its users. This was done by searching their feeds for posts containing the words ‘loneliness’ and ‘COVID-19 during May 1st 2020 to July 1st 2020. The 4492 tweets they found during their study was then divided into three themes: (1) Group influence of COVID-19 loneliness; (2) Social distance during COVID-19 and its effects on loneliness; and (3) Mental health effects of COVID-19 loneliness. The results reflected public feelings about ‘loneliness’ during the COVID-19 pandemic in close-to-real-time and showed the possible utility of social media to keep track of emerging mental health issues. It also provided inspiration for future approaches to resolve new concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic, such as isolation (Koh & Liew, 2020).
In another study conducted by Ahmad & Murad that aimed to determine how social media in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq influenced self-reported mental health and the spread of panic about COVID-19. During this study, an online questionnaire with a total of 516 social media users were sampled with the data analysed by the SPSS software. Results showed that social media media had a large impact in spreading fear and panic regarding the pandemic, which subsequently had a negative influence on people’s mental health. It was seen that Face was one of the most commonly used social media networks during the outbreak. Data also showed that most distress and anxiety was exhibited mostly amongst the youths aged 18-35.
All social media users can generate and distribute data in a socially acceptable manner in an ideal world. However, in fact, this is often not the case, particularly in the face of a crisis, such as the current pandemic, when emotions are strong. Before acting on that information, the reader remains heavily responsible for verifying the material they believe to be correct. (Wong, Ho, Olusanya, Antonini, & Lyness, 2020). In times of pandemic, where time urgency, physical distance and the need to widely spread data have forced us to find new ways of working and learning, there are definite benefits to the use of social media for health communication. However, when engaging in clinical discussions, it is of primary importance that social media participants track the information shared for accuracy and reliability, and value patient confidentiality.
In conclusion, people used social media sites to gather information about COVID-19 during the lockdown. Depending on the gender, age, and level of education of the person, the essence of the impact of social media panic among individuals varied. In Iraqi Kurdistan, social media played a key role in spreading fear about the COVID-19 outbreak (Ahmad & Murad, 2020)
.