Social fretworks: life online

The Economist Espresso --Dec 21st 2018

Source: Royal Society for Public Health

A growing body of research demonstrates that in young people psychiatric illnesses are linked with heavy consumption of social media. According to a survey in 2017, young Britons reported that social networks gave them scope for self-expression and community-building. But they also said that the platforms exacerbated anxiety, depression, sleep-deprivation, bullying, body image and “FOMO” (“fear of missing out”). An experiment in 2014 concluded that Facebook triggers the same impulsive part of the brain as gambling and substance abuse. It is difficult to prove that obsessing over likes and comments causes mental illness, rather than the other way around. But one survey tracked 5,208 Americans between 2013 and 2015, finding that an increase in Facebook activity was associated with a future decrease in mental health. Happiness rates are highest for FaceTime (91%), a video-calling app, and phone calls (84%). When it comes to social networking, actual conversations are hard to beat.

Passage Structure

• 论点: 精神疾病与社交媒体沉沦有关

A growing body of research demonstrates that in young people psychiatric illnesses are linked with heavy consumption of social media.

• 论证: 举例论证(survey/experiment...result)

According to a survey in 2017, young Britons reported that social networks gave them scope for self-expression and community-building.
// 论点:A不好. 论证: 调查证明,尽管A有一定好处, 但是它有...坏处
But they also said that the platforms exacerbated anxiety, depression, sleep-deprivation, bullying, body image and “FOMO” (“fear of missing out”).

An experiment in 2014 concluded that Facebook triggers the same impulsive part of the brain as gambling and substance abuse.
// 研究结果呼应论点A不好
It is difficult to prove that obsessing over likes and comments causes mental illness, rather than the other way around.很难证明沉迷于Facebook点赞评论会导致心理疾病,而不是心理疾病导致沉迷
// 尽管有...逻辑漏洞/不严谨/难被证实, 但是有证据/现象表明...
But one survey tracked 5,208 Americans between 2013 and 2015, finding that an increase in Facebook activity was associated with a future decrease in mental health. 但是一项...的追踪调查发现...增加与未来的...恶化有关.
Happiness rates are highest for FaceTime (91%), a video-calling app, and phone calls (84%). When it comes to social networking, actual conversations are hard to beat.

Conclusion:

• 论点
• 论据: (与论点一致的研究‘结论’)+ 尽管(问题/‘负向’研究结果)+ 但是(‘正向’结果)

Words & Phrases

1. body of sth.: a large amount of something, especially something that has been collected.

• body of knowledge/evidence/opinion...
• A growing body/number of research demonstrates that...
• There is a growing body of evidence that charges are too high.

2. psychiatric illnesses 精神疾病
   psych(e):mind; soul

• psych up 使做好心理准备: He psyched himself up for the match.

3. consumption of social media
   = reception (of information); purchase; use (of goods/service)

• His confidential speech was not meant for public consumption.

4. be linked with
   Link to/with == be associated with: make or have a connection 联系

• Both heart disease and cancer have been linked to/with cigarette smoking.

  Link up with : join or connect with. 连接

• Here is the spot where the eastern trail links up with the southern one.

5. scope
   = opportunity/possibility to do/ deal with sth.

• scope for improvement 提升的空间
  = purpose

• sb. maintains sth. to be the scope for life

6. exacerbate: make worse
   ex:thoroughly + acerb(ic):bitter/sharp + ate

7. sleep-deprivation
   de:away + privat: private+ ion缺乏

• be deprived of sth.

8. miss out
   miss out on sth.: not involved in it/take part in it.错失了

• We're missing out on a tremendous opportunity.

  miss out sth./sb.: you fail to include them.=leave out

• Some would question the wisdom of leaving her out of the team.

• If you prefer mild flavors reduce or leave out the chili.

9. obsess over
   ob:opposite + sees:sit困扰; 痴迷;念念不忘

• be obsessed with sb./sth. 痴迷/ be filled in mind of the thought of suicide
• sth. obsessed sb. 困扰
• She obsesses over her shoes. 念念不忘

10. the other way around
    the opposite of what is expected or supposed.

• It was you who sought me out, not the other way around

Tips

• 简洁形式改写/转换: v. + n.=> n. + v.的n.形式
  express self=>self-expression
  build community=> community-building

Thoughts

网络社交媒体与心理健康这个话题一直活跃在大众视野中,感觉每隔一段时间都要被拿出来做做文章. 有的是阐述客观的研究结论,有的就借此传播煽动一些一边倒的激进的观点. 但是从这篇简洁的报道中我们可以看出, 从研究、调查结果看, 网络社交有益的方面都与个体与个体之外的群体、社会联系有关, 而有害的方面都是个体自身内部的发展. 本人是理工科专业,对社会学领域的研究方法不甚了解, 在此谨发表一下个人的看法.

从这篇文章中我们可以看出,他提到的作为论据的三个结果中,有两个是survey调查,一个是experiment实验. 实验说明Facebook activity对大脑产生的刺激区域与赌博和药物滥用产生的相同, 由此作者希望说明网络社交会给大脑带来和赌博等一致的影响,由此断定网络社交不好. 由于文章本身很短, 也没有具体阐述实验细节,我觉得至少应该放一个研究报告的链接. 既然没有, 只从他的描述逻辑漏洞还是很大的. 刺激区域相同不代表产生的作用就相同. 很简单的比如说咖啡因和吸毒都可以产生兴奋, 红牛也可以, 虽然红牛产生兴奋的机制可能和前两者不同, 但是至少这个绝对的推理是有问题的. 然后再说survey. 文科研究中涉及到很多调查, 我个人对调查在得出研究结论中的重要性是持弱态度的. 调查的影响因素太多, 也有很多会被忽视的因素, 由调查本身得出的结论我觉得并没有太大的说服力. 在概率统计中有这样一句话 Correlation is not causation. 相关关系并不等于因果关系. 由此我觉得调查得出的网络社交增加与心理疾病增加的相关关系, 并没有足够的说服力证明他们之间的因果关系. 当然, 我不是这个专业, 如果有专业的朋友愿意分享专业的见解, 也欢迎讨论.

此平台旨在分享与记录. 文章内容不定. 日更是个目标,会努力做到提高频率, 但若实在学业很忙或没有读到有意思的文章可能就不会更. 有缘看到我的文章的朋友可以多多分享自己的见解或有意思的文章.Knowledge is power but sharing is even more powerful! 祝大家每天都有进步.