Stating that Facebook, one of the most important channels of social media, has been proven to be addictive, experts said, "In scientific studies, it has been observed that people who use Facebook intensively have a decrease in the volume of gray material in the amygdala region of the brain as in substance addicted patients."
Experts, who recommend that the use of smartphones and social media should be limited, recommend socializing by communicating face to face.
Psychiatry Specialist Assist. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Alptekin Çetin from Üsküdar University NPISTANBUL Hospital made important evaluations regarding Facebook addiction.
Stating that two out of every three people in the world visit social networks, Asst. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Alptekin Çetin said, "Every day, 8 billion minutes are spent on Facebook and 285 million pieces of content are shared. With 350 million active users, if Facebook were a country, it would be the 3rd most populous country in the world after China and India. With more than 41 million users, Turkey is the third most active country on Facebook. Turkey is the country that spends the most time on the internet in Europe."
"'Facebook Addiction' is an important issue addressed by many scientists and mental health professionals under the title of internet addiction, although it has not yet been included in psychiatry diagnostic groups," said Assist.Assoc.Prof. Alptekin Çetin, "Facebook, the most intense social networking site of the last 10 years, has become an area that affects people's daily life, likes, mental state and behavior during the day after this intense use. The addiction potential of the Facebook social platform, which introduced concepts such as "liking", "being liked", "sharing" and "following" into our lives, is discussed and studies are being conducted in scientific circles all over the world."
May cause memory problems and forgetfulness
Pointing out that it is known that individuals who have problems in impulsivity and pleasure-oriented life are at risk for Facebook addiction, Assist.Assoc.Prof. Dr. Alptekin Çetin said, "In scientific studies, it has been observed that people who use Facebook intensively have volume decreases in the gray material in the amygdala region of the brain as in substance addict patients." With the effects in this region of the brain, clinical consequences such as memory problems, forgetfulness, loss of reasoning skills may occur, which may negatively affect daily life.
Those with adaptation and communication problems are at risk
Assist.Assoc.Prof. Dr. Alptekin Çetin stated that young individuals who are often introverted, avoid daily social relationships, have adaptation problems, have communication problems with friends and family, and experience anxiety about being liked are at risk for Facebook addiction. Assist.Assoc.Prof. Dr. Alptekin Çetin said the following:
"Spending most of the day on social media accounts using a computer or smartphone, not allocating time for other daily activities, experiencing an intense desire to enter Facebook, and the emergence of anxiety if they cannot provide this are the criteria that may pose a risk for addiction."
Internet addiction can be treated
Noting that internet addiction can be handled under the behavioral addictions group, Assist.Assoc.Prof. Dr. Alptekin Çetin said, "In this case, the person should first be informed to make him/her aware of the problem he/she is experiencing, then restricting the use, ensuring that he/she spends more time on other activities during the day, reducing the use of smartphones, training in socialization and human relations, evaluating possible additional psychiatric diagnoses, evaluating and starting the necessary therapy and drug treatments."
Facebook scale to be adapted to Turkey
Assist. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Alptekin Çetin stated that the Turkish validity and reliability study of the Bergen Facebook Addiction Scale was conducted as a master's thesis within Üsküdar University and NPISTANBUL Hospital and said, "It is known that this scale is an important tool in diagnosing Facebook addiction. For this reason, necessary preparations were made to translate the scale into Turkish and it was applied to 300 university students. In this study, it was aimed to translate the scale into Turkish, not the addiction status of the individuals. It was ensured that the necessary Turkish material was created for Facebook addiction studies to be conducted in the following years."