Cognitive functioning and social media: Has technology changed us?

Abstract

Social media use and its effects on mood have been well researched. However, social media use and its effects on cognition are not as well known. Based on the research studies available, this study hypothesized that those categorized as participating in high social media use would have lower ability to effectively inhibit irrelevant information and higher ability for working memory. The 70 participants in this study were given a questionnaire to assess their level of social media use (low, average, high) and the Stroop and Corsi tests were used as measures of inhibition and working memory, respectively. One-way ANCOVAs were used to analyze the data and control for age, gender, race, and education, as these are common demographics that cognitive tests use to standardize and compare scores. The researchers were unable to find a significant relationship between social media use, working memory functioning, and ability to inhibit information. Limitations and future directions are discussed.

Keywords

• Social media
• Cognitive functioning
• Attention
• Working memory
• PsycINFO code 2340