Editorial . . . . . . . 

Over the past few decades, the processes of globalization and technological progress have both accelerated. The world has undoubtedly been converted into a “Global Village” propelled by technology, dependent on information, and motivated by knowledge as a result of modern technology in communication. There are significant ramifications for the environment and educational institutions from the establishment of this “New Global Village.” It empowers us to be more informed, enlightened and keep up-to-date with global events. One of the most ground-breaking innovations that promote the free flow of ideas today is social media. Websites that have gained popularity in the social sector, such as Facebook, Twitter, Telegram, Instagram, and others, create online social networks and have turned the concept of the global village into a reality in which billions of people communicate through social networking sites. The use of social networking sites for remote communication has produced a number of advantages since it improves the lives of thousands of people by disseminating knowledge throughout the world, making us citizens of the world. As of April 2022, there were 4.65 billion social media users worldwide, or 58.7% of the world’s population, according to the Global Digital Overview and data by Kepios. The number of people using social media has increased over the last 12 months as well, with 326 million additional users joining since last year. Nearly 9 out of 10 internet users currently use social media at least once a month, according to the most recent figures. This represents an average rate of more than 10 new users every single second, or annualized growth of 7.5 percent. The analysis also reveals that consumers use social media on average for around two and a half hours per day. It is predicted that people sleep between seven and eight hours every day and use social media for around 15% of their awake hours. Globally, people use social media platforms for more than 10 billion hours every day, which is roughly 1.2 million years of human life. However, keep in mind that the number of social media users may not represent individual users, and due to problems like duplicate accounts, the number of social media users may surpass that of internet users or even the entire population. According to reports from Statista Research Department, Hamburg March 8, 2022, there are at least 300 million active users on 17 social media platforms, including Facebook, which has 2.9 billion users, YouTube, which has 2.5 billion, WhatsApp, which has 2 billion, Instagram, which has 1.4 billion, and so on.

However, the question at hand is how today’s social media platforms are influencing and impacting students’ life in terms of their mental growth.The rise in student users of these social networking sites is one of the most intriguing trends to observe. According to a survey by Research Centers, 72% of high school students and 78% of college students spend time on social media sites including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tik-Tok, YouTube, and online games. These figures demonstrate the level of participation of the student body in the online social networking space. According to a joint study by Campus2Careers and Study Breaks on students’ use of mobile devices, undergraduates spend an average of 3.6 hours a day on their smartphones and cell phones. Morahan-Martin and Schumacher (2000) define social media addiction as the overuse of the internet and the failure to exercise serious self-control in doing so. Itodo (2011) reports in the Daily Trust that there seems to be a worrying increase in social networking preoccupation among students today, a trend that, if not properly managed, might have a considerable negative impact on their academic, social, and spiritual lives. It involves kids in a range of activities, some of which may be addicting, and has turned into a significant diversion, lowering students’ overall performance. As their focus has evolved away from library research and toward a general dependence on these social networking platforms, students’ top sources of information nowadays are online Wikipedia and blogs. They spend more time using cell phones, which are widely available among today’s youth, to access Facebook, Tik-Tok, Instagram, and other social media platforms. Many students find it impossible to stop monitoring and updating their profiles on these social networks after two to three hours, even at the expense of other pursuits like study and employment.

They primarily waste time on social media looking for uninformative content. They spend a lot of time on websites other than instructional ones, which has a detrimental effect on young minds, leads to several health problems, and strains relationships within the family. When parents gather together, a common complaint they frequently hear is that their kids are so engrossed in the intriguing world of social networks that they find it difficult to catch their attention. The less positive aspects of technological development have led to problems like the loss of real-life values, particularly among students who make up the majority of users communicating on social networking sites. They enjoy playing with their smartphones and using social media in an effort to stay up to date with events. The majority of them believe that social media increases their ability to study and broadens their knowledge of information-gathering techniques. The majority of students in higher education institutions have been seen to multitask during lectures by pinging or Facebooking. Some people get so carried away with talking when walking along the highway. Some of them even plug their earpieces while studying and singing the songs, which lowers their assimilation rates.

However, kids are no longer learning through reading, which has decreased their extensive use and brain growth. In reality, they read solely for exam prep and not for knowledge acquisition. Even reading books has greatly diminished. The need to make new acquaintances online and spend time talking about minor matters has stifled time that should be devoted to learning, academic research, and innovation. They now spend approximately 24 hours online due to their addiction to the current online fiesta and their intense interest in social media. As a result of social media distraction, the academic performance of the majority of students is negatively impacted. The drop-out rate for students and unemployment are still big concerns, despite the fact that there have been several social, economic, and environmental issues that have increased the pressure on students in recent years. If we believe in the development of information and skills, we should be concerned about this occurrence in light of all the foregoing advantages and disadvantages. If this risky social media “obsession” trend is allowed to continue, it could further harm the already failing educational system. The students are left to determine what is truly important to them in life and how much of this virtual life translates to the actual world.