The endless scrolling on social media leads someone past the memes and breaking news content to a new video: one on one relationships. A self-proclaimed expert spouts unsolicited advice about the ideal relationship, which can have a deeper impact than many realize.
Social media can influence the standards teens have for their love lives. The frequent posts on relationships and how someone’s partner should treat them can cause teens to feel like an inadequate partner or become discontent with their relationship. In turn, this leads to jealousy or even questioning one’s relationship in its entirety.
Nearly all teens are on social media or have access to it. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, 95% of teens say that they have some form of social media, with daily to constant use common.
Adolescents’ attachment to social media has grown and has begun to appear in their relationships. According to Pew Research Center, 59% of teens say their connection with their partner feels stronger because of social media, while 15% say they feel this way often. When someone’s main source to connect with their partner is online rather than in person, this can cause them to cling onto social media more, creating a form of dependency for these types of platforms.
For many, relationship posts can seem irrelevant as they might not be on their phones as much, but there are adolescents who depend on these social platforms for insight. These posts can lead to them developing feelings like unfulfillment and emptiness in their relationships. According to HelpGuide, excessive use of social media can cause feelings of insufficiency, as well as discontent and loneliness.
Adolescents are susceptible to trying to follow social media’s expectations of themselves and their romantic relationships. According to the Social Media Victims Law Center, social media can very easily manipulate and mold an individuals’ self-esteem, making them vulnerable to comparing themselves and the people around them to what they view on social media. A study done by the Pew Research Center found that 27% of teens say that social media has made them feel jealous and more insecure about the solidity of their relationships.
Terms like the “three month rule” stem from social media, specifically from Tiktok. The “three month rule” is testing out a relationship for three months, placing their partner on a trial run, looking for their “real personality” before considering continuing that relationship. These posts help spread the narrative to teens that when getting into a relationship, rather than letting themselves experience a genuine connection, they should question their partner’s identity for months before deciding whether to commit to the relationship.
It’s easy for anyone to be consumed by these platforms, which can conflict with time being spent with their partners. There are steps many can take to be offline more and further present in their relationships. According to HelpGuide, social media usage can be limited by turning off those notifications and spending less time on it. That time, originally spent online, can be substituted with playing engaging games to get to know their partner more, going out somewhere to local spots or even something as simple as going on walks together.
Though it might seem like these platforms, on the outside don’t do harm, they’re a silent killer and leaning off of them improves relationships and how people feel in them. According to Mountains Therapy, being off of social media betters communication and conflict within a relationship and lessens one’s insecurities. Cutting back on the hours spent on social media can help migrate away from that harmful thinking and spend that time creating a real connection instead, but the underlying issue persists: the death of young love.
