It uses various critical analysis and investigation methods to develop a working model of a user's perception of media experience.
Newer apps like Instagram and Snapchat have changed how people consume media, communicate, and deal with their self-image.
In the 1920s, marketing, advertising, and public relations professionals began researching consumer behavior and motivation for commercial applications.
Platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat have become important areas of study as these apps have increased incidences of social comparison, body image concerns, and technology addiction.
TikTok, particularly with its fast-paced content and short videos, has been associated with increased anxiety and depression rates among younger users.
[2] Media psychology's theories include the user's perception, cognition, and humanistic components in regards to their experience to their surroundings.
Theories in psychology applied to media include multiple dimensions, i.e., text, pictures, symbols, video and sound.
Social media apps like TikTok and Instagram add to this issue, as their platforms make it easy for users to constantly compare themselves to the fabricated lives of influencers seen online.
Due to the pressure to mold to the idealized beauty and lifestyle standards of society, Instagram and TikTok are linked to increased feelings of anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem.
This harmful cycle is escalated by the increased popularity of social media influencers, who share highly crafted videos that present their lives in unrealistic, fabricated ways.
Young teen girls are vulnerable to this cycle as they try to meet these unrealistic lifestyle and beauty standards portrayed by influencers, which leads to continued social comparison and dissatisfaction with one's life, body, and achievements.
While social media can be used as a space for creating connections and exploring creativity when used responsibly, it can be used excessively and unsafely, which can lead to psychological challenges.
These platforms are tailored to users' preferences, so they continue to see the media they relate to, causing prolonged exposure and engagement.
Features like ads, alerts, and personalized recommendations cause users to keep coming back to their favorite social media apps.
An alarming 54% of teens report that giving up their favorite social media apps would be challenging because they have a significant hold on their daily lives.
Hence, they return, causing higher instances of media addiction, zoning out, fear of missing out, and anxiety or depression.
[2] Social media use has also been linked to decreased, disrupted, and delayed sleep, which can worsen depression, memory loss, and poor academic performance.
It also analyzes how the media becomes inadequate and the inadvertent outcomes of performance shifts, which determine better or worse applications.
[14] The use of technology has enabled the improvement of global connection, limiting traditional activities and advancing the media sector.
Major contributors to media psychology include Marshall McLuhan, Dolf Zillmann, Katz, Blumler and Gurevitch, David Giles, and Bernard Luskin.
Marshall McLuhan is a Canadian communication philosopher who was active from the 1930s to the 1970s in the realm of Media Analysis and Technology.
[15] Zillmann advanced the theory of "Excitation transfer" by establishing the explanation for the effects of violent media.
[19] Bernard Luskin is a licensed psychotherapist, with degrees in business and a UCLA doctorate in education, psychology and technology.