I recently had the opportunity to go to the cinema to watch The Social Reckoning, and I came away feeling compelled to write something about it.
I don't get to the cinema particularly often, so it was lovely to spend a couple of hours doing something a little different. Although, as it turned out, I probably spent just as much time thinking about the film afterwards as I did watching it!
For anyone who hasn't heard of it, The Social Reckoning explores the revelations surrounding Facebook and what was known internally about the potential impact of social media on its users.
I found it fascinating, particularly from a psychological perspective. It got me thinking about something that I've always found interesting in my work as a clinical hypnotherapist: just how much of our everyday behaviour is influenced by processes happening outside our conscious awareness?
We generally like to believe that we're in control of our decisions. That our opinions are our own, our choices are considered and that we're reasonably aware of what influences how we feel. But the human brain is far more complicated than that, and when we introduce social media into the equation, things become particularly interesting.
Why do we find it so difficult to stop scrolling?
You've probably heard dopamine described as the brain's 'feel-good chemical', but that's actually a rather oversimplified explanation.
Dopamine is a neurotransmitter involved in motivation, learning and reward-related behaviour. It plays an important role in helping us recognise experiences that might be worth repeating. Interestingly, dopamine isn't simply about experiencing pleasure. It's also involved in anticipating rewards and learning from the difference between what we expect and what actually happens.
And this is where social media becomes particularly interesting.
Think about the last time you opened Facebook, Instagram or TikTok. Perhaps you intended to check a message, see what somebody had posted or have a quick look while waiting for the kettle to boil. Before you knew it, 20 minutes had passed.
Sound familiar?
Social media offers a constant stream of potentially rewarding experiences. A funny video, an interesting photograph, a message from a friend or perhaps somebody responding positively to something you've shared. The important thing is that we don't know exactly what we're going to find, and that unpredictability can be particularly effective at maintaining behaviour.
Our brains are constantly learning what might be rewarding, and over time, the act of reaching for our phones can become something we do with very little conscious thought. We might not even be particularly interested in what we're looking at, yet we continue scrolling.
Of course, it's not quite as simple as suggesting that every notification gives us a dopamine hit. The neuroscience is considerably more complicated than that, but the principles of reward learning help explain why checking our phones can become such an automatic habit.
Something I found particularly interesting was a study published in Psychological Science in 2016, which investigated how teenagers responded to photographs on a simulated social media platform.
The participants underwent functional MRI scans while viewing photographs that appeared to have received either a large or small number of likes. Researchers discovered that photographs receiving more likes were associated with increased activity in brain regions involved in reward processing, including an area called the nucleus accumbens. The teenagers were also more likely to like photographs that appeared popular with other people.
I think that's quite remarkable when you consider what it means.
Simply seeing that other people had approved of something influenced how the participants responded to it.
Of course, social influence isn't a new phenomenon. Human beings have always been influenced by the behaviour and opinions of others. We're social creatures, and feeling accepted has always been important to us. But social media introduces something relatively new: the ability to measure that approval publicly, instantly and repeatedly.
Likes, comments, shares and follower counts can all become visible indicators of social acceptance, and whether we consciously acknowledge it or not, those signals may influence how we feel about ourselves and the decisions we make.
Are our opinions really our own?
Something else that struck me was the extent to which the information we encounter online is selected for us.
When we open a social media platform, we're not simply seeing a random collection of posts. Algorithms are continually making predictions about what we're most likely to engage with, based on our previous behaviour. What have we watched? Which posts have we interacted with? What has held our attention?
These patterns help determine what we're shown next.
And this raises an interesting psychological question. If we're repeatedly exposed to certain ideas, opinions or information, could that gradually influence the way we think?
The answer is that it certainly can, although the extent of that influence varies.
One of the psychological processes involved is known as confirmation bias. We naturally tend to notice and give greater weight to information that supports what we already believe.
Imagine somebody who believes that the world is becoming increasingly dangerous. If they regularly engage with upsetting news stories, they may find themselves encountering more of that type of content. Over time, this could reinforce their existing perception.
It doesn't necessarily mean the information they're seeing is inaccurate, but it may not represent a particularly balanced picture of what's happening in the wider world.
Our brains are constantly using information from our environment to interpret experiences and make predictions. When the information we're exposed to becomes increasingly narrow, our perceptions can be influenced accordingly.
It's quite a thought, isn't it? We might feel that we're independently forming an opinion when, in reality, the information available to us has already been filtered.
And it isn't just our opinions that can be affected. Our emotions can be influenced too, often without us recognising what's happening.
Have you ever opened social media feeling perfectly content, only to put your phone down feeling anxious or somehow dissatisfied?
Perhaps you've seen somebody enjoying an incredible holiday, celebrating an achievement or appearing to have the perfect relationship. Or maybe you've found yourself reading an argument between complete strangers.
You weren't particularly bothered about anything before you picked up your phone, yet now your mood has changed.
One of the psychological processes that might help explain this is social comparison. We naturally evaluate aspects of our lives by comparing ourselves with other people, and this isn't necessarily unhealthy. Sometimes comparison can motivate us or help us learn.
However, social media provides an almost endless opportunity to compare our ordinary, everyday experiences with carefully selected moments from other people's lives.
We might be sitting at home after a difficult day, looking at photographs of somebody else's wonderful holiday, beautiful home or apparently perfect family life.
Logically, we know we're only seeing a tiny part of that person's reality. But knowing something logically doesn't always prevent us from responding emotionally.
There's also our natural tendency to pay particular attention to information that appears threatening or negative. From an evolutionary perspective, recognising potential threats has been enormously important for survival. Our brains haven't suddenly abandoned those processes simply because we're now living in a world of smartphones and social media.
Consequently, emotionally charged or threatening content can capture our attention, even when it has very little relevance to our own lives. If we're repeatedly exposing ourselves to that type of information, it's worth considering what effect it might be having on our emotional wellbeing.
What does all of this mean for children and young people?
As a Mum of two teenagers, this was probably one of the aspects of the film that stayed with me the most.
As adults, we can sometimes struggle to recognise how our online experiences influence our thoughts and emotions, so what might that mean for children and teenagers?
Adolescence is a particularly important period of brain development. The areas involved in emotional processing, reward sensitivity and social experiences are undergoing significant changes, while the prefrontal cortex, which plays an important role in planning, impulse control and evaluating consequences, continues developing into early adulthood.
This doesn't mean teenagers are incapable of making sensible decisions. Far from it. But it does mean that social experiences, peer approval and emotionally rewarding activities can have particular significance during adolescence.
Now consider the environment in which many young people are growing up.
For previous generations, an embarrassing moment at school might have been forgotten by the following week. An argument with a friend might have ended when everybody went home, and comparisons with other people were largely limited to those within our immediate social circles.
Today, those experiences can continue long after the school day has finished.
A photograph can be shared, a message can be misinterpreted and somebody can find themselves excluded from an online conversation. There may be very little opportunity to escape the social pressures that accompany growing up.
Alongside those pressures is a constant stream of photographs, videos and opinions about appearance, relationships, success and what life supposedly should look like.
I think it's important that we recognise just how different that experience is from the one many of us had growing up.
And the scale of social media use among young people is considerable.
A systematic review published in 2024 examined 32 studies investigating the relationship between social media use and anxiety in adolescents. Approximately 56% of the studies reported a positive association between social media use and anxiety.
It's important to understand what that actually means. It doesn't mean that social media caused anxiety in those young people. It could be that young people who are already experiencing anxiety are more likely to use social media in particular ways, or that other factors influence both.
Another review published in 2024 examined existing research into social media and adolescent mental health and concluded that the relationship is complex. Individual characteristics, the way social media is used and the design of the platforms themselves can all play a part.
And I think that's an important distinction, because it would be far too simplistic to suggest that social media is inherently harmful.
For some young people, social media can provide a valuable sense of belonging. It can help them maintain friendships, find communities and connect with people who understand their experiences, particularly when they might feel isolated in their everyday lives.
There are undoubtedly benefits, just as there are potential risks.
What concerns me more is whether young people are being given the opportunity to understand how these platforms can influence their emotions and behaviour, particularly when so much of that influence may happen without conscious awareness.
And actually, I think that's something many adults could benefit from understanding too.
So where does hypnotherapy fit into all of this?
One of the things I find most interesting about the human brain is how much of our everyday behaviour becomes automatic.
Think about driving a familiar route. You don't consciously consider every movement involved in steering, changing gear or applying the brakes. Through repetition and learning, many of those processes become increasingly automatic.
Our brains are remarkably efficient at developing habits, and generally speaking, that's a very good thing. Imagine how exhausting life would be if we had to consciously think through every single action we performed.
But sometimes we develop patterns of thinking or behaviour that aren't particularly helpful.
Perhaps we automatically reach for our phones whenever we're bored. Maybe we find ourselves repeatedly checking for messages, or we've developed a habit of comparing ourselves with other people without even recognising that we're doing it.
In my work as a solution-focused clinical hypnotherapist, I'm particularly interested in helping people recognise unhelpful patterns and develop more constructive responses.
Hypnotherapy isn't about somebody taking control of your mind. It's about using focused attention and therapeutic suggestion to support changes in how we think, feel and behave.
The understanding of the link between neuroscience and hypnosis is constantly developing, but we know that our brains have the capacity to learn and adapt throughout life. This ability, known as neuroplasticity, is one of the reasons we can develop new habits, change our responses and learn different ways of approaching situations.
And I think that's a really encouraging thing to remember.
Just because a behaviour has become automatic doesn't mean it has to remain that way.
A final thought
I came away from The Social Reckoning thinking about how much our world has changed in a relatively short period of time.
We now have access to more information, opinions and social interaction than any previous generation could have imagined. Much of that information is delivered through systems designed to predict what will capture and maintain our attention.
I don't think we need to be frightened of technology, and I certainly don't think we need to feel guilty about enjoying social media. I use it myself, both personally and professionally, and there are plenty of things about it that I genuinely enjoy.
But I do think there's something valuable in occasionally becoming a little more curious about our own behaviour.
Why did that particular post affect my mood? Why do I feel the need to check my phone again when I only looked at it five minutes ago? Am I genuinely interested in what I'm watching, or am I simply continuing out of habit?
And perhaps most importantly, how much of what I'm thinking and feeling has been influenced by the information I've been exposed to today?
The human brain is extraordinary, but it isn't immune to influence.
Understanding a little more about how it works gives us an opportunity to become more aware of the patterns that shape our everyday lives.
And perhaps that's the most valuable thing I took away from my rather rare trip to the cinema.
The next time you find yourself scrolling through social media, perhaps ask yourself one question.
Am I choosing what I'm giving my attention to, or is something else choosing for me?
References and further reading
A book that I talk about in the practice, although likely a little outdated now, is ‘Zucked’ by Roger McNamee. Published in 2019, it explores how Facebook’s algorithms and business model can exploit human psychology and influence behaviour. It also explores how it can contribute to political polarisation.
Sherman, L. E., et al. (2016). The Power of the Like in Adolescence: Effects of Peer Influence on Neural and Behavioral Responses to Social Media. Psychological Science, 27(7), 1027–1035.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5387999/
Sherman, L. E., et al. (2018). Peer Influence Via Instagram: Effects on Brain and Behavior in Adolescence and Young Adulthood. Child Development, 89(1), 37–47.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28612930/
Sala, A., Porcaro, L., & Gómez, E. (2024). Social Media Use and Adolescents' Mental Health and Well-Being: An Umbrella Review. Computers in Human Behavior Reports.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chbr.2024.100404
Associations Between Social Media Use and Anxiety Among Adolescents: A Systematic Review (2024).
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39425720/
Ofcom. Children and Parents: Media Use and Attitudes.
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/media-use-and-attitudes/media-habits-children/childrens
Sony Pictures. The Social Reckoning.
https://www.sonypictures.co.uk/movies/social-reckoning?utm_source=chatgpt.com