How Social Media Shapes the Lives of Students

Alen Philip (S4073797)

2025-06-11

Introduction – What Are We Exploring?

  • In 2025, social media is a constant presence in students’ lives — from waking up to winding down.
  • But how much is too much?
  • This analysis explores how social media usage patterns relate to mental health, academic performance, and relationship wellbeing among students aged 16–25 across multiple countries.

To guide the audience, this story follows a structured arc:

  • Where they are – Global usage patterns
  • Who they are – Academic level and self-reported impact
  • Individual outcomes – Mental health and sleep patterns
  • Group trends – Addiction level comparisons
  • Relational impact – Conflict and relationship strain

Where Is Social Media Most Dominant?

Students in the USA and India spend over 6 hours daily on social media, while usage is lower in Denmark and France. Cultural and regional differences may play a role in how students engage with digital platforms.

Who’s Addicted — and Who’s Affected?

Students who feel social media affects their academics consistently report higher addiction scores — across all academic levels. High school students appear most vulnerable.

Time Online, Mind Decline?

Mental health scores drop steadily as daily usage increases, for both male and female students. This downward trend highlights a potential emotional toll tied to excessive screen time.

Addiction Correlates With Poor Sleep and Mood

When students are grouped by addiction level, we see a sharp decline in both mental health and sleep hours. Very high addiction levels correlate with the lowest mental health and least sleep.

Social Media: Fueling Fights, Feeding Isolation?

Students with higher addiction scores report more conflicts — especially those who are single. Social media tension may contribute to emotional friction and isolation.

Conclusion

The story is clear:

  • More usage is consistently linked to lower mental health.
  • Higher addiction leads to less sleep and more conflict.
  • Students themselves acknowledge academic decline as a result.

While social media offers connection, inspiration, and entertainment, this analysis reveals a darker undercurrent — its overuse is clearly tied to a range of negative life outcomes: academically, emotionally, and socially.

The evidence is undeniable. The question now is: can we teach healthier digital habits before the cost becomes irreversible?

Reference

Holtz, Y. (n.d.). The R Graph Gallery. https://r-graph-gallery.com/
Shamim, A. (2024). Social Media Addiction vs Relationships [Data set]. Kaggle. https://www.kaggle.com/datasets/adilshamim8/social-media-addiction-vs-relationships
W3Schools. (n.d.). R Tutorial. W3Schools. https://www.w3schools.com/r/