Assessing the effects of social media use on the mental health of students at Makerere University

Abstract

According to World Health Organization, mental health as a broad term comprises various conditions such as diseases, disorders, injuries, or trauma affecting an individual's cognition, emotional regulation, or behavior, leading to dysfunction in psychological, biological, or developmental processes, often resulting in distress or impairment in different aspects of life. The primary aim is to evaluate the effect of social media usage on the mental health of Makerere University undergraduate students, with specific objectives including examining social media frequency, identifying various social media platforms, investigating demographic disparities in mental health, and assessing the differences in mental health based on the level of awareness about support services among students. The research utilizes stratified sampling method and it includes 100 students. The study uses the Mental Health Continuum – Short Form (MHC-SF) which comprises of 14 items questions; emotional well-being consisting of (Items 1–3), social well-being consisting of (Items 4–8), and psychological well-being consisting of (Items 9–14). Multinomial regression is then used in order to analyze the influence of independent variables on the dependent variable which is mental health categories (flourishing mental health, languishing mental health and moderate mental health). Results shows that 56% of students experienced languishing mental health, 31% experienced moderate mental health while the least 13% were at flourishing mental health status. More findings reveals that the frequency of social media use, year of study, awareness of mental health services, and age are influential factors in predicting students' mental health at Makerere University. Despite this, gender and duration of social media use did not show significant predictive power for mental health conditions among students. This research recommends the following; creating more awareness through campaigns, workshops and all possible avenues to create awareness about mental health support services, students should regulate their social media usage so as to control its negative externalities on their emotional, psychological and social wellbeing and building strong bonds with peers and encouraging adults, employing strategies to regulate emotions, maintaining both physical and mental health, monitoring social media and technology use, and seeking assistance when necessary.