KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — As more and more social media apps pop up every year, concerns are growing over how much time kids and adults spend on their phones.
"Cell phones and social media are all about industrial psychology and making you react to whatever the communication is," Mental Health Association of East Tennessee CEO Ben Harrington said. "We've all been absolutely conditioned to look at the phone when it buzzes or beeps at us."
The internet tool has addicting qualities that mental health leaders immediately recognize.
"We all love to be rewarded, praised, and all those likes and positive comments," Harrington said. "That is feeding our need to feel good about ourselves."
While the apps can provide good content, some say it can do more harm if not regulated. One of the challenges is keeping kids from getting the proper amount of sleep. Harrington says kids need at least eight hours of sleep which can be impacted by those staying up late on their phones.
"Content really kind of needs to be limited to daytime and early evening hours," Harrington said. "If you ask your child a question at 7 a.m. and you get a 'huh?'—They're not getting enough sleep, something's going on."
It can also present content to kids that can harm their morale. This is why this mental health specialist recommends clear outlines of social media usage between parents and kids.
"It's your house, it's your rules," Harrington said. "If your kid has access to a cell phone, that parent needs to have access to their cell phone to take a look."