Positive or Negative? The Effect of Emerging Technologies and Products on Mental Health

Download or read book Positive or Negative? The Effect of Emerging Technologies and Products on Mental Health written by Chao Guo and published by Frontiers Media SA. This book was released on 2023-11-02 with total page 110 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Emerging technologies and products such as digital health technology, computing platforms, wearable devices, smartphone sensors and electronic gadgets have the potential to transform and empower society while simultaneously presenting unprecedented challenges in our life. Some like electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are for entertainment, some like online conference platforms are for convenience and some like social media have become a life necessity. However, there is an ongoing debate about whether the use of physical and virtual digital technology products can do harm to mental health. Some evidence-based research shows that frequent use of social media may cause depression and anxiety, and derived behavioral phenomena like cyberbullying and game addiction, which negatively affect people’s lives. Other scholars think digital technology products could provide insights into timely, personalized, engaging and accessible intervention, promotion and improvement of mental health. Given the ubiquity of digital devices and their complex and subtle associations with mental health, more research is needed to bring benefits to both research and daily life practices.