好英语网社交媒体是否有害？证据和谜团在哪里？
Three billion people, around 40% of the world’s population, use online social media – and we’re spending an average of two hours every day sharing, liking, tweeting and updating on these platforms, according to some reports. That breaks down to around half a million tweets and Snapchat photos shared every minute.
目前有30亿人使用网络社交媒体，约占全球总人口40%。根据一些研究报告，我们平均每天花费两小时在这些平台上分享，点赞，发推文，更新帖子。这意味着全球每分钟就有50万条推文和Snapchat照片被分享。
With social media playing such a big part in our lives, could we be sacrificing our mental health and well-being as well as our time? What does the evidence actually suggest?
社交媒体在我们生活中扮演了非常重要的角色，那么我们会不会为此牺牲了心理健康、身体健康，并浪费了时间？相关证据表明了什么？
在一些情况下，社交媒体有可能提高人们的幸福感
Since social media is relatively new to us, conclusive findings are limited. The research that does exist mainly relies on self-reporting, which can often be flawed, and the majority of studies focus on Facebook. That said, this is a fast-growing area of research, and clues are beginning to emerge. The findings of some of the science so far:
社交媒体相对来说是新生事物，所以确凿的结论还很少。现有的研究主要依赖于自发报告，因此常常容易出错，而且大多数研究聚焦于Facebook。不过，该领域的研究正在快速增加，证据也开始指向这一点。到目前为止的一些研究成果：
STRESS
压力
People use social media to vent about everything from customer service to politics, but the downside to this is that our feeds often resemble an endless stream of stress. In 2015, researchers at the Pew Research Center based in Washington DC sought to find out if social media induces more stress than it relieves.
人们使用社交媒体用来抱怨对客服的不满、政治等各种事情，但是这种做法的一个弊病就是：这些抱怨文就像是一条永无止尽的压力长河。2015年，华盛顿皮尤研究中心（Pew Research Center）的研究人员试图弄清社交媒体带来的压力是否比它释放的压力更多。
In the survey of 1,800 people, women reported being more stressed than men. Twitter was found to be a “significant contributor” because it increased their awareness of other people’s stress.
该中心项对1800人进行的一项调查发现，女性感到的压力较大，推特是一个重要的压力来源，因为它增加了人们对他人压力的意识。
But Twitter also acted as a coping mechanism – and the more women used it, the less stressed they were. The same effect wasn’t found for men, whom the researchers said had a more distant relationship with social media. Overall, the researchers concluded that social media use was linked to “modestly lower levels” of stress.
但推特也是一种应对机制——女性使用推特越多，她们感到的压力就越小。男性则不然。研究人员表示男性与社交媒体的关系较疏远。整体而言，研究人员的结论是社交媒体能"轻微的"减轻压力。
MOOD
心情
In 2014, researchers in Austria found that participants reported lower moods after using Facebook for 20 minutes compared to those who just browsed the internet. The study suggested that people felt that way because they saw it as a waste of time.
2014年，奥地利研究人员发现使用Facebook 20分钟的被试者与上网随便浏览的被试者相比心情较差。该研究认为，人们之所以有这种感受是因为他们觉得使用Facebook是在浪费时间。
A good or bad mood may also spread between people on social media, according to researchers from the University of California, who assessed the emotional content of over a billion status updates from more than 100 million Facebook users between 2009 and 2012.
在评估了超过1亿个Facebook用户在2009年至2012年间的10亿条状态更新的情绪内容后，加利福尼亚大学的研究人员认为，正面和负面情绪都会在社交媒体平台上的人群中蔓延。
Bad weather increased the number of negative posts by 1%, and the researchers found that one negative post by someone in a rainy city influenced another 1.3 negative posts by friends living in dry cities. The better news is that happy posts had a stronger influence; each one inspired 1.75 more happy posts. Whether a happy post translates to a genuine boost in mood, however, remains unclear.
如果天气不好，负面帖子就会增加1%。研究人员发现，在一个下雨的城市，一条负面帖子会影响生活在没下雨的城市的朋友，导致1.3条负面帖子。不过，好消息是开心的帖子影响力更大。每条会带来1.75条开心的帖子。不过，尚不清楚快乐的帖子是否会改善真实的心情。
ANXIETY
焦虑
Researchers have looked at general anxiety provoked by social media, characterised by feelings of restlessness and worry, and trouble sleeping and concentrating. A study published in the journal Computers and Human Behaviour found that people who report using seven or more social media platforms were more than three times as likely as people using 0-2 platforms to have high levels of general anxiety symptoms.
研究人员对社交媒体引起的一般焦虑进行了研究，这些焦虑的主要特征是烦躁、担忧的情绪，以及睡眠障碍和注意力下降。期刊《计算机与人类行为》（Computers and Human Behaviour）发表的一项研究发现使用7个以上社交媒体平台的人，一般焦虑症状比使用0至2个平台的人严重三倍。
That said, it’s unclear if and how social media causes anxiety. Researchers from Babes-Bolyai University in Romania reviewed existing research on the relationship between social anxiety and social networking in 2016, and said the results were mixed. They concluded that more research needs to be done.
不过，仍不清楚社交媒体是否会引起焦虑，以及如何引起焦虑。罗马尼亚克鲁日巴比什-波雅依大学（Babes-Bolyai University）的研究人员在2016年对社会焦虑与社交关系的现有研究进行了总结整理。他们称，结果并不一致，还需要进一步研究。
DEPRESSION
抑郁
While some studies have found a link between depression and social media use, there is emerging research into how social media can actually be a force for good.
虽然一些研究发现抑郁和使用社交媒体有关，但是新的研究认为社交媒体有可能带来好处。
Two studies involving more than 700 students found that depressive symptoms, such as low mood and feelings of worthlessness and hopelessness, were linked to the quality of online interactions. Researchers found higher levels of depressive symptoms among those who reported having more negative interactions.
对700多名学生进行的两项研究发现情绪低落以及毫无价值和绝望的情绪等抑郁症状与网上互动的质量有关。研究者发现负面互动较多的学生抑郁症状也较为严重。
A similar study conducted in 2016 involving 1,700 people found a threefold risk of depression and anxiety among people who used the most social media platforms. Reasons for this, they suggested, include cyber-bullying, having a distorted view of other people’s lives, and feeling like time spent on social media is a waste.
2016年的一项对1700人进行的类似研究发现社交媒体的用户有三重抑郁和焦虑风险。他们认为原因包括网络欺凌，对他人生活的歪曲认识以及把使用社交媒体视作浪费时间。
However, as BBC Future will explore this month in our #LikeMinded season, scientists are also looking at how social media can be used to diagnose depression, which could help people receive treatment earlier. Researchers for Microsoft surveyed 476 people and analysed their Twitter profiles for depressive language, linguistic style, engagement and emotion. From this, they developed a classifier that can accurately predict depression before it causes symptoms in seven out of 10 cases.
同时，科学家也在研究如何利用社交媒体诊断抑郁症，并帮助接受治疗的患者早日康复。微软的研究人员调查了476人，分析了他们推特个人信息页中与抑郁相关的语言、语言学风格、互动和情感特点。由此，他们设计出可以准确预判抑郁症的筛查法，七成的病例可以在症状出现之前筛查出来。
Researchers from Harvard and Vermont Universities analysed 166 people’s Instagram photos to create a similar tool last year with the same success rate.
哈佛大学和佛蒙特大学（Vermont Universities）的研究人员去年分析了166人的Instagram照片，设计出一个类似的工具，成功率也相同。
SLEEP
睡眠
Humans used to spend their evenings in darkness, but now we’re surrounded by artificial lighting all day and night. Research has found that this can inhibit the body’s production of the hormone melatonin, which facilitates sleep – and blue light, which is emitted by smartphone and laptop screens, is said to be the worst culprit. In other words, if you lie on the pillow at night checking Facebook and Twitter, you’re headed for restless slumber.
人们曾经习惯于在一片漆黑里度过夜晚，但是现在从早到晚都被人造光包围。研究发现，这有可能抑制人体分泌促进睡眠的褪黑素。而智能手机和笔记本电脑屏幕所发出的蓝光据说是罪魁祸首。换句话说，当你晚上躺在床上刷Facebook和推特的时候，你就无法安然入睡。
Last year, researchers from the University of Pittsburgh asked 1,700 18- to 30-year-olds about their social media and sleeping habits. They found a link with sleep disturbances – and concluded blue light had a part to play. How often they logged on, rather than time spent on social media sites, was a higher predictor of disturbed sleep, suggesting “an obsessive ‘checking’”, the researchers said.
去年，匹兹堡大学（University of Pittsburgh）的研究人员调查了1700位从18岁至30岁人士的社交媒体使用习惯和睡眠习惯。他们发现社交媒体和睡眠障碍之间存在关联，并作出结论：蓝光在这中间发挥了作用。和使用社交媒体的时间相比，登录这些网站的次数是睡眠障碍更重要的预兆。研究者说，睡眠障碍者会沉迷于"查看"。
The researchers say this could be caused by physiological arousal before sleep, and the bright lights of our devices can delay circadian rhythms. But they couldn’t clarify whether social media causes disturbed sleep, or if those who have disturbed sleep spend more time on social media.
研究人员表示，这可能是睡前的生理激发所致。电子设备的明亮光线有可能导致推迟昼夜节律。但是他们无法区分是社交媒体导致了睡眠障碍，还是本身有睡眠障碍的人会更多的使用社交媒体。
ADDICTION
上瘾
Despite the argument from a few researchers that tweeting may be harder to resist than cigarettes and alcohol, social media addiction isn’t included in the latest diagnostic manual for mental health disorders.
虽然一些研究人员认为戒掉推特比戒烟、戒酒更难，但是社交媒体成瘾并未被纳入最新的心理障碍诊断手册中。
That said, social media is changing faster than scientists can keep up with, so various groups are trying to study compulsive behaviours related to its use – for example, scientists from the Netherlands have invented their own scale to identify possible addiction.
不过，科学家难以追赶社交媒体的变化速度。所以，各类团体正在试图研究与社交媒体使用相关的强迫症行为——例如，荷兰的科学家发明了他们独有的上瘾鉴别衡量标准。
And if social media addiction does exist, it would be a type of internet addiction – and that is a classified disorder. In 2011, Daria Kuss and Mark Griffiths from Nottingham Trent University in the UK have analysed 43 previous studies on the matter, and conclude that social media addiction is a mental health problem that “may” require professional treatment. They found that excessive usage was linked to relationship problems, worse academic achievement and less participation in offline communities, and found that those who could be more vulnerable to a social media addiction include those dependent on alcohol, the highly extroverted, and those who use social media to compensate for fewer ties in real life.
如果社交媒体确实会成瘾，那它就是网瘾的一种——就可以归为一种障碍。英国诺丁汉特伦特大学（Nottingham Trent University）的达里亚·库斯（Daria Kuss）和马克·格里菲斯（Mark Griffiths）在2011年分析了43个以前的研究成果，作出结论称，社交媒体成瘾是一种"有可能"需要专业治疗的心理健康问题。他们发现过度使用社交媒体与人际关系问题、学业成绩下降、线下社会活动参与减少有关。他们还发现依赖酒精者、高度外向者以及利用社交媒体来弥补现实生活中人际关系缺失的人比较容易对社交媒体成瘾。
SELF-ESTEEM
自尊心
Women’s magazines and their use of underweight and Photoshopped models have been long maligned for stirring self-esteem issues among young women. But now, social media, with its filters and lighting and clever angles, is taking over as a primary concern among some campaigning groups and charities.
女性杂志上体重偏轻、经过修图的模特照片长期以来被指引发了年轻女性的自尊问题。但是，社交媒体通过滤镜、灯光效果以及巧妙的角度正在取代女性杂志，成为社会运动团体和慈善机构最为担忧的领域。
Social media sites make more than half of users feel inadequate, according to a survey of 1,500 people by disability charity Scope, and half of 18- to 34-year-olds say it makes them feel unattractive.
根据残障慈善机构Scope对1500人进行的一项调查显示，社交媒体网站让一半以上的用户感到自身的欠缺，18至34岁的人有一半都表示社交媒体让他们感到自己没有吸引力。
A 2016 study by researchers at Penn State University suggested that viewing other people’s selfies lowered self-esteem, because users compare themselves to photos of people looking their happiest. Research from the University of Strathclyde, Ohio University and University of Iowa also found that women compare themselves negatively to selfies of other women.
2016年宾夕法尼亚州立大学（Penn State University）的一项研究表明，查看其他人的自拍照会伤害人的自尊心，因为用户会把照片里快乐的人与自己比较。斯特拉斯克莱德大学（University of Strathclyde）、俄亥俄大学（Ohio University）和爱荷华大学（University of Iowa）的研究也发现女性会把自己和其他女性的自拍照相比较，并产生负面的看法。
But it’s not just selfies that have the potential to dent self-esteem. A study of 1,000 Swedish Facebook users found that women who spent more time on Facebook reported feeling less happy and confident. The researchers concluded: “When Facebook users compare their own lives with others’ seemingly more successful careers and happy relationships, they may feel that their own lives are less successful in comparison.”
但是有可能影响到人自尊心的不只是自拍照。一项对1000名瑞典Facebook用户的研究发现使用Facebook时间较长的女性比较容易感到不开心和没有自信。研究人员的结论是："当Facebook用户把自己的生活与其他看似事业有成、家庭美满的人相比时，他们可能会感到自己不那么成功。"
But one small study hinted that viewing your own profile, not others, might offer ego boosts. Researchers at Cornell University in New York put 63 students into different groups. Some sat with a mirror placed against a computer screen, for instance, while others sat in front of their own Facebook profile.
但是有一个小范围的研究认为查看自己而非他人的个人页面有可能增强自尊心。康奈尔大学（Cornell University）的研究人员把63名学生归入不同的小组。比如，其中一些学生坐在对面是计算机屏幕的镜子旁边，而另一些学生则看着自己的Facebook个人页面。
Facebook had a positive effect on self-esteem compared to other activities that boost self-awareness. Mirrors and photos, the researchers explained, make us compare ourselves to social standards, whereas looking at our own Facebook profiles might boost self-esteem because it is easier to control how we’re presented to the world.
与其他提高自我意识的活动相比，Facebook对自尊心有积极的作用。研究者解释称，镜子和照片让我们把自己与社会标准放在一起比较，而看自己的Facebook个人页面有可能会增强我们的自尊心，因为在Facebook上比较容易控制我们把自己呈现给世界的方式。
WELL-BEING
幸福
In a study from 2013, researchers texted 79 participants five times a day for 14 days, asking them how they felt and how much they’d used Facebook since the last text. The more time people spent on the site, the worse they felt later on, and the more their life satisfaction declined over time.
2013年的一项研究中，研究者在14天的时间里，每天向79名被试者发五次短信，询问他们的感受以及上次发消息以来他们使用Facebook的程度。在该网站上花的时间越长的人，随后的心情越差，而且之后他们对生活的满意度也会下降。
But other research has found, that for some people, social media can help boost their well-being. Marketing researchers Jonah Berger and Eva Buechel found that people who are emotionally unstable are more likely to post about their emotions, which can help them receive support and bounce back after negative experiences.
但是，其他研究发现，对一些人来说，社交媒体有助于促进他们的生活幸福。市场调研员乔纳·贝尔格（Jonah Berger）和埃娃·布谢尔（Eva Buechel）发现，情绪不稳定的人发文描述自己情绪的可能性较大，这可能会帮助他们获得支持，从负面体验中解脱出来。
Overall, social media’s effects on well-being are ambiguous, according to a paper written last year by researchers from the Netherlands. However, they suggested there is clearer evidence for the impact on one group of people: social media has a more negative effect on the well-being of those who are more socially isolated.
根据去年荷兰研究人员的一篇论文，整体来看，社交媒体对幸福的作用有些模糊。不过，他们表示有越来越清晰的证据表明社交媒体对一类人的影响：对那些与社会隔离的人来说，社交媒体对他们的生活幸福有较多的负面作用。
RELATIONSHIPS
人际关系
If you’ve ever been talking to a friend who’s pulled their phone out to scroll through Instagram, you might have wondered what social media is doing to relationships.
如果曾经你在和朋友聊天时，对方拿出手机刷Instagram，你可能已经想过社交媒体对人际关系有什么影响。
Even the mere presence of a phone can interfere with our interactions, particularly when we’re talking about something meaningful, according to one small study. Researchers writing in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships tasked 34 pairs of strangers with having a 10-minute conversation about an interesting event that had happened to them recently. Each pair sat in private booths, and half had a mobile phone on the top of their table.
根据一项小范围研究，即使旁边放了一部手机，也可能会影响到人与人的互动，尤其是当他们正在讨论意义重大的事情时。在《社会和个人关系期刊》（Journal of Social and Personal Relationships）上发表文章的研究人员让34对陌生人聊天10分钟，讲述自己最近遇到的一件有趣的事。每一对都坐在单独的隔间里，其中一半的桌子上放了一部手机。
Those with a phone in eyeshot were less positive when recalling their interaction afterwards, had less meaningful conversations and reported feeling less close to their partner than the others, who had a notebook on top of the table instead.
视线中有手机的人，在后来回忆互动时的评价较为消极，谈话的意义较少，与对方的亲密感也较低。与之对照的被试者桌子上放的是笔记本。
Romantic relationships aren’t immune, either. Researchers at the University of Guelph in Canada surveyed 300 people aged 17-24 in 2009 about any jealousy they felt when on Facebook, asking questions such as, ‘How likely are you to become jealous after your partner has added an unknown member of the opposite sex?’.
情感关系也未能幸免。加拿大圭尔夫大学（University of Guelph）的研究人员在2009年调查了300位17-24岁的人，主题是他们在Facebook上是否感到过嫉妒。提出的问题例如："如果你的伴侣加了不认识的异性好友，你有多大的可能性会感到嫉妒？"
Women spent much more time on Facebook then men, and experienced significantly more jealousy when doing so. The researchers concluded they “felt the Facebook environment created these feelings and enhanced concerns about the quality of their relationship”.
女性在Facebook上花的时间比男性多很多，她们感到的嫉妒也较多。研究者的结论是，"Facebook这样的环境会造成这种感受，加深人们对情感关系质量的担忧。"
ENVY
羡慕
In a study involving 600 adults, roughly a third said social media made them feel negative emotions – mainly frustration – and envy was the main cause. This was triggered by comparing their lives to others’, and the biggest culprit was other people’s travel photos. Feeling envious caused an “envy spiral”, where people react to envy by adding to their profiles more of the same sort of content that made them jealous in the first place.
在一项对600人进行的研究中，大约三分之一的被试者称社交媒体让他们感到负面情绪——主要是挫败感——羡慕是主因。导火索是把自己的生活与其他人进行比较。罪魁祸首是他人的旅游照片。羡慕感会螺旋式上升，因为人们为了应对羡慕情绪，会添加更多相同内容的照片。
However, envy isn’t necessarily a destructive emotion – it can often make us work harder, according to researchers from Michigan University and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. They asked 380 students to look at “envy-eliciting” photos and texts from Facebook and Twitter, including posts about buying expensive goods, travelling and getting engaged. But the type of envy the researchers found is “benign envy”, which they say is more likely to make a person work harder.
密歇根大学和威斯康星大学密尔沃基分校（University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee）的研究人员认为，羡慕并不一定是一种破坏性情绪——它也常常促使我们努力学习。他们让380名学生看Facebook和推特上"引人羡慕"的照片和文字，包括购买昂贵商品、旅游和订婚的贴文。但是研究者发现，这种羡慕是良性的，更有可能让人努力学习。
LONELINESS
孤单
A study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine last year surveyed 7,000 19- to 32-year-olds and found that those who spend the most time on social media were twice as likely to report experiencing social isolation, which can include a lack of a sense of social belonging, engagement with others and fulfilling relationships.
《美国预防药物期刊》（American Journal of Preventive Medicine）去年发表的一项研究调查了7000位19至32岁的人，发现在社交媒体上花时间最多的人，感受到社会隔绝的可能性高两倍，包括缺乏社会归属感，缺乏与他人的互动和充实的人际关系。
Spending more time on social media, the researchers said, could displace face-to-face interaction, and can also make people feel excluded.
研究人员称，在社交媒体上花较多时间的人可能会取代面对面的沟通，有可能更让人感到被隔绝。
“Exposure to such highly idealised representations of peers’ lives may elicit feelings of envy and the distorted belief that others lead happier and more successful lives, which may increase perceived social isolation.”
"接触他人展示在社交媒体上的高度理想化的生活，有可能会引发羡慕的情绪。还会形成一些扭曲看法，比如其他人的生活更加快乐，更加成功。这可能会增加已知的社交隔绝。"
CONCLUSIONS?
结论？
It’s clear that in many areas, not enough is known yet to draw many strong conclusions. However, the evidence does point one way: social media affects people differently, depending on pre-existing conditions and personality traits.
我们清楚的知道，在很多方面，我们还不足以作出确凿的结论。然而，证据确实指向一个方向：社交媒体对人有不同的影响，取决于先决条件和人的个性。
As with food, gambling and many other temptations of the modern age, excessive use for some individuals is probably inadvisable. But at the same time, it would be wrong to say social media is a universally bad thing, because clearly it brings myriad benefits to our lives.
就像食物、赌博等诸多现代社会的诱惑一样，过度使用社交媒体可能对一些人不利。但与此同时，也不可以说社交媒体在整体上是坏事，因为它显然给我们的生活带来了很多益处。
