Conceptualizing a Healthier Social Media Diet
"Let thy food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food" — Hippocrates (400 BC). Just as with food, the way we consume social media affects our mental and social well-being. The Socially Fed Pyramid helps you understand and manage your social media consumption for a healthier digital lifestyle.
Explore the PyramidAbout Socially Fed
The Socially Fed Pyramid draws parallels between food and media consumption to illustrate the effect on consumers, communities, and society. Just as the food pyramid provides a conceptualization for food consumption and its effect on nutrition, the Socially Fed Pyramid provides a framework for understanding social media consumption.
Social media consumption is nuanced and benefits from a sophisticated way to conceptualize this in a high impact and accessible format. This project is the result of extensive research, including surveys with 136 respondents and analysis of existing studies on social media usage patterns.
The research found that while 'active' social media users reported more positive outcomes and stronger community connections compared to 'passive' users, they also experienced higher rates of negative interactions. This highlights the complexity of social media consumption and the need for a balanced approach.
The Socially Fed Pyramid
Level 1: Served Content
This is the "tip" of the pyramid - the content that algorithms select and serve to you. It includes personalized ads, suggested posts, and algorithmic recommendations. Like added sugars in food, this content is designed to be enticing and keep you engaged, but should be consumed in moderation.
Examples: Auto-playing videos, "For You" pages, algorithmic feeds, clickbait designed to trigger emotional responses.
Health effects: Research shows passive consumption of algorithm-served content is associated with increased feelings of loneliness and disconnection.
Level 2: Casual Browsing
This level represents the casual scrolling and browsing we do without specific intentions. It's still largely passive but involves more choice than purely algorithm-served content.
Examples: Scrolling through your main feed, casually checking notifications, watching stories without particular purpose.
Health effects: Can be a relaxing activity in moderation, but excessive casual browsing can become a time sink and lead to feelings of wasted time or FOMO (fear of missing out).
Level 3: Intention Based
This represents more deliberate social media use where you have a specific purpose in mind. This involves active choices about what content to consume rather than passive reception.
Examples: Searching for specific information, following particular accounts for their content, joining groups related to your interests.
Health effects: More likely to provide satisfaction and value when the use aligns with your goals or interests, creating a sense of purpose in your social media consumption.
Level 4: Creation
This level involves actively creating and contributing content rather than just consuming it. Research shows that active social media use is associated with more positive outcomes than passive consumption.
Examples: Posting updates, sharing photos, commenting on others' content, participating in discussions, creating stories.
Health effects: Creating and sharing can foster connection and provide a creative outlet, though it also opens you up to more feedback (both positive and negative).
Level 5: Deep Focus
This forms the foundation of a healthy social media diet. It represents mindful engagement that integrates social media into your life in a meaningful way, with full attention and purpose.
Examples: Having meaningful conversations via messaging, working on collaborative projects, building genuine connections, creating content that requires focus and dedication.
Health effects: Associated with the strongest positive outcomes, including enhanced social capital, genuine connection, and a sense of community.
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Explore the research behind the Socially Fed Pyramid and dive deeper into the concept.
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