Have you ever planned to check your social media for just twenty minutes before bed, only to look up two hours later and realize you’ve been lost in a rabbit hole of cooking videos, cat reels, and motivational clips from people you’ve never heard of? That’s the power of social media algorithms.
This program works quietly in the background to keep you hooked and coming for more. And guess what? It does its job so well that some users, mostly teens, spend up to nine hours straight on their favorite platforms.
The problem is, spending that much time online doesn’t come without a cost. From addiction issues to mental health problems, the hidden side of social media algorithms can quietly take a toll.
Read on to learn more about this dark side of your favorite online activity and what can be done about it.
What Do Social Media Algorithms Do?
If you’ve ever been to a match-making event, you’ll understand easily what these algorithms are and how they work.
Like match-makers, social media algorithms connect you with content that matches your interests. They analyze your behavior, preferences, and interactions to understand your type of content, and then serve loads of it.
This is why, if you’ve recently visited pages related to the latest iPhone 17 Pro, you’ll start seeing this product popping up all over your feed, whether you want to or not.
Why Social Media Algorithms Work
Our brains are wired to love rewards. When we go on social media, each like, comment, or notification is a form of reward. It delivers a tiny bit of dopamine, also called the reward chemical, which makes us crave more.
This dopamine hit is exactly why you hear people talk about social media addiction, and why so many of us spend so many hours glued to Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, or X (formerly Twitter).
These social media platforms leverage what experts call “addictive algorithms” to keep users coming back for more.
The Link Between Social Media and Mental Health
When you combine long hours on social media, relentless algorithms that don’t want to let you go, and dopamine hits that keep you feeling happy and satisfied, you end up with something that’s much bigger than just a harmless pastime.
The effects soon start to creep in. It could start with you staying up for hours just scrolling from one account to another.
Soon, you start to feel anxious whenever you’re not online, like you’re missing out on something important. Then there’s the loss of self-esteem that comes when you see online friends supposedly living a better life than you. All these can eventually lead to anxiety and depression.
Experts have been warning about this for years, and the clamor has gotten more serious recently. For example, in 2024, former U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy called for social media platforms to carry a warning label, to let people know about their dangers.
Just recently, the Australian government banned social media use for anyone 16 years old and below. The goal is to curtail the effects of the dark, hidden side of these platforms, such as exposure to harmful content, cyberbullying, addiction, and more, all of which increase the risk of mental health issues..
Also, ‘every day people’ are increasingly realizing the scale of this problem and pushing back.
You might have seen stories about the Facebook lawsuit, where families raised concerns about Meta (Facebook’s parent company) engineering its algorithm to surface addictive content to users, putting them at risk of mental health problems. Cases like this show that the issue is no longer theoretical; it’s real.
How Social Media Algorithms Affect Mental Health
We now know that social media algorithms can impact mental health, but how exactly does this happen? Let’s look at a few examples:
- Reinforcement Loops: Algorithms are designed to notice what captures your attention on social media and feed you more of that. Watch one sensational news story, and you’ll suddenly start seeing more of them on your feed. Fitness posts? You’ll be flooded with clips of perfect bodies. Very soon, this loop will trap you in an unhealthy bubble.
- Social Comparison: Social media algorithms typically favor attention-grabbing content, which will only reveal 5% of the poster’s life, and you start comparing to your 100%. This can leave you feeling less, and depressed.
- FOMO: Algorithms make sure you see what everyone else, even people you may not know, is doing, some of which you cannot afford to do. This constant exposure can lead to FOMO, or fear of missing out, where even though you’re doing just fine, you’re afraid that life is leaving you behind.
The point is, while social media can be entertaining and even educational, there’s a dark side that not many are aware of. Meta may be aware of it. However, according to TorHoerman Law, instead of doing something about it, the company continues using it to engage users, even at the detriment of their mental health.
Outsmarting the Algorithm
While we wait for proper legislation to curtail this dark side, it’s important to take some commonsense steps to protect yourself.
- Set limits to your social media use. If necessary, use a third-party app or your alarm to let you know when your allowed hours are up.
- Curate the content you consume. Follow only people who inspire and educate you.
- Avoid the dopamine hits of constant notifications when someone engages with your posts or shares something new. Turn them off.
- Look for something else to replace your social media habit. Read a physical book, keep a journal, or play board games. Anything to keep your hands busy and away from your phone.
The goal is not about totally staying off social media, but about awareness and taking back control.
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