Next to sliding in the DM (hooking up through the platform), it is scientifically proven that Instagram can recognize if you’re suffering from a depression. This is based on the filter you add to the picture you upload.
According to researchers from Harvard and The University of Vermont (NU.nl, 2016), certain filters are valid and reliable points of measurement in diagnosing a depression. Perhaps you’re reading this and do not know what Instagram entails. Well, basically it is a mobile and web application that allows network users to post pictures with standardized filters on the platform.
The research made use of 43.950 pictures and 166 people. They developed an algorithm that analyses pictures of depressed people before their diagnosis and people who were not depressed at all. In 70% of all cases, a depression was diagnosed before a clinical diagnosis was made (Slate, 2016). As you would expect, the research tells us that dark shades such as blue and grey have the preference among the depressed participants. In terms of filters, these are Inkwell and Crema.
Focusing on a group of active network users on this platform, we turn to the ‘2016 teenager’. This group is the first generation of teenagers that experiences social media in its full effect. Teenagers use social media to stay in touch with friends and family through multiple mediated platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. Keeping in contact is not always beneficial however. A new study executed by the University of Glasgow (The Guardian, 2016) found that teenagers at a high school feel a certain pressure to reply in time. It could be damaging their sleep and increase the risk of anxiety and depression.
This is interesting and further research has to tell what implications this could have for other target audiences, such as adolescents. That brings to mind, can other social media platforms be used in order to diagnose other mental illnesses or syndromes?
Sources:
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/sep/11/teens-social-media-night-risk-harm-mental-health-research
http://www.nu.nl/apps/4308724/algoritme-kan-depressieve-instagram-gebruiker-herkennen.html
http://www.slate.com/blogs/future_tense/2016/08/22/instagram_helps_diagnose_depression_according_to_study.html
Dear Natnael, thank you for your interesting post! I was not aware that Instagram was able to recognize your depression, but it makes sense. While it is useful to look at filters, it can also be valuable to look at which people a certain person follows and which type of posts they like. I think the latter can also be implemented in Facebook. They don’t use filters, but they can see what their users like and comment on, thus, they could use this data to see if it is related to depression or to happy feelings. I definitely think social media can be used to a certain extend to see symptoms of depression, but I also think in order to diagnose someone, a further investigation outside of social media is needed.
Hi Natnael,
Thank you for sharing this post, it was a very interesting read as I did not know that Instagram was able to recognize depression. I believe that the word ‘diagnose’ is a bit strong for this setting. Although it is fascinating that an algorithm is able to detect characteristics of a depression by factors such as colors and comment-to-like ratio, I believe that the actual diagnosis can only be made by a qualified doctor. Nevertheless, this algorithm will provide a high degree of value in deciding which patients need immediate assistance with their medical condition, helping doctors prioritize their time to help those that currently need it the most.
As opposed to looking at one specific platform like Instagram, I think that it may be interesting for researchers to look at an individual’s overall usage of social media (e.g. a Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube) in order to recognize a potential medical condition. The reasoning behind this, is that a study by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine has identified a relationship between the heavy use of social media and the possibility of depression. You can read the academic article here (http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/da.22466/full)!
– http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2016/08/24/490941032/instagramming-in-black-and-white-could-be-youre-depressed
– http://www.forbes.com/sites/amitchowdhry/2016/04/30/study-links-heavy-facebook-and-social-media-usage-to-depression/#4cd383437e4b