PHL 5-2 Assignment

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Southern New Hampshire University *

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111

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Arts Humanities

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Jan 9, 2024

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PHL-111: Critical Thinking 1 PHL-111: Critical Thinking 5-2 Milestone Two: Counterargument Christopher Jensen Southern New Hampshire University

PHL-111: Critical Thinking 2 The article “The role social media plays in mental health” written by Lawrence Robinson and Melinda Smith, M.A., states that using social media can have a direct impact on one’s mental health and well-being. This article shows what seems to be confirmation bias. Confirmation bias is when one seeks only information and evidence that supports one’s claims and assumptions and avoids information that does not (Boss, 2021). This article is a very fact-based interpretation of the negative aspects of social media use and the user’s mental health and wellbeing. Upon further examination of the article, it becomes more apparent that specific information was utilized to support their interpretation. Things such as the amount of information that has been presented on the negative aspects of social media and a miniscule portion of the article on the positive aspects. As the negative aspects are explained in detail, there is no information as to why social media itself is so negative or any potential counterarguments to the interpretation. There is plenty of short-term studies that are referenced in the article, but there are no long-term studies to support their interpretation. The article “The role social media plays in mental health” written by Lawrence Robinson and Melinda Smith, M.A., passes the CRAAP test. This is a timely article as is was published in 2020, this article is relevant as this is an issue that potentially affects everyone, this article was written by a professional in their respective field of study, this article uses credible sources to support their claims and is well researched, and this article serves a purpose to provide information on the negative aspects of social media use and the user’s mental health and well- being.

PHL-111: Critical Thinking 3 Social media has grown to be a regular part of everyday life through its popularity and global reach. When crafting a counterargument, I would utilize the article “Scientists find that the impact of social media on wellbeing varies across adolescence” (Go-gale-com. N.D.). My first premise is that this article provided information that there are specific points in time where “social media usage was associated with a decrease in life satisfaction 12 months later” (Go- gale-com. N.D.) and that teenagers who had a “lower than average” satisfaction with their lives reported an increase in their social media usage one year later (Go-gale-com. N.D.). The second premise for the counterargument is “In both females and males, social media use at the age of 19 years was again associated with a decrease in life satisfaction a year later” (Go-gale-com. N.D.). This suggests that possible social changes have the potential to make us more vulnerable, such as leaving home or starting a new career not social media usage. The conclusion would be that social media is only one of many numerous variables that may contribute to the cause of negative mental health effects in adults and adolescents. Other variables such as “changes within our bodies, such as brain development and puberty, and in our social circumstances appear to make us vulnerable at particular times of our lives" (Go-gale- com. N.D.) an increase in the dissatisfaction of one’s quality of life itself can also contribute to an increase in social media usage. This counterargument would be an inductive argument. The conclusion of the article was based on a specific conclusion and utilized facts that support the claims. Just because the facts of the article are true, does not mean that the conclusion is true. This counterargument is moderately strong, as more information on the subject is still needed to support the claims against social media and its negative effects on mental health and one’s well-being.

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PHL-111: Critical Thinking 4 This counterargument appears to avoid bias. This article states facts from both sides of the argument from experts that are relevant to the specific field of study and also the article continues on and states that “the link between social media use and life satisfaction one year later was not statistically significant. Decreases in life satisfaction also predicted increases in social media use one year later; however, this does not change across age and or differ between the sexes” (Go-gale-com. N.D.) providing the readers with an alternative point of view and not displaying any confirmation bias. The article also states that sometimes their hypothesis may be incorrect, and the link is not always connectable as the information was not always statistically significant at the time (Go-gale-com. N.D.).

PHL-111: Critical Thinking 5 References: Boss, J. A. (2021). Think: Critical Thinking and Logic Skills for Everyday Life. McGraw-Hill Education. Go-gale-com. (N.D.). SCIENTISTS FIND THAT THE IMPACT OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON WELLBEING VARIES ACROSS ADOLESCENCE. Retrieved from: https://go-gale-com.ezproxy.snhu.edu/ps/i.do? p=ITOF&u=nhc_main&id=GALE%7CA698522029&v=2.1&it=r&sid=ebsco&aty=ip Helpguide.org. (2023) Social Media and Mental Health. Retrieved from: https://www.helpguide.org/articles/mental-health/social-media-and- mental-health.htm

PHL 5-2 Assignment

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