TikTok and Mental Health

TikTok is being investigated in the United States by a coalition of state attorneys general for any possible adverse effect the social media content can have in young people, especially in children and teens. Maura Healey, one of the attorneys generals said "the investigation will mainly focus on the techniques used by TikTok to boost young user engagement such as increasing duration of time spent and frequency of engagement in the platform.

They are trying to understand why TiKTok is better in capturing young audience.IT has been found that young people are spending more time on TikTok compared to Facebook or even youtube.

This is not the first time when TikTok has come under investigation. IN 2019, the social media was made to pay $5.7 million in settlement for violating users privacy rights of teens and kids under 13 years of age.

TikTok aside, I think a lot of social media websites can impact mental health negatively, especially for the younger one's out there. They feel like they've got to make every photo, every selfies, and every reel perfect otherwise they won't be friends with their group in real life. Basically boils down to peer pressure.

I can understand why TikTok ended up in this situation and I do hope that they are putting things in place to prevent it continuing.

Every social media platform has the ability to affect a persons mental health, it can be through what they see going on in the world, how social media implies how life should be even though it is false is also one of the biggest ways people are affected by social media when it comes to their mental health.

This is such an important conversation to be having. TikTok’s algorithm is incredibly effective at keeping users engaged, especially younger audiences, and that’s both impressive and concerning. The way content is served on the platform i.e. fast, personalized, and highly addictive can make it difficult for kids and teens to self-regulate their time. When you pair that with the still-developing emotional and cognitive maturity of younger users, the potential impact on mental health becomes a serious issue.

It’s encouraging to see officials starting to look deeper into not just data privacy, but also the psychological influence these platforms have. The 2019 settlement was a big step, but clearly, there’s more work to be done.

As much as social media can be a tool for creativity and connection, there needs to be a stronger emphasis on responsibility, both from the platforms and from the adults in kids’ lives. Parents, educators, and communities should be supported in understanding how these apps work and how to set healthy boundaries.

It’ll be interesting to see where this investigation leads and if it sets new standards for digital platforms moving forward.

Sorry I accidentally double posted, can we delete this post please? Thank you!

It's heartbreaking to see how TikTok's algorithm manipulates young users into becoming addicted. This only shows that there is something seriously wrong. I fully support holding these social media sites responsible for their consequences on mental health.

Tiktok don't have a lot of educative content. Most of them are people that making dance and sings and talking about skin care or cooking or these non educative threads.

Personally, I know how addictive TikTok can be, and as a parent, I'm concerned about how this affects the young ones. What really gets my attention though is that they have no transparency about how they collect data. It makes me worry the more that they were made to pay $5.7 million in 2019 for breaking users' privacy rights.

I see the TikTok investigation as critical, probing how its engagement tactics may harm young users’ mental health. Scrutinizing algorithms and notifications is key to protecting kids and teens from potential negative impacts.

Even though TikTok doesn't have a lot of educative contents, i believe TikTok is good for one's mental health. This is because it has a lot of entertaining contents that can relax one's mind and lift up one's mood.