Social Media Use and Students' Mental Health

Along with the development of digital technology, social networks are becoming increasingly popular and important in the social life of many countries, including Vietnam. Besides the positive effects of social networks such as creating connections and expanding development opportunities for individuals, social networks also bring many negative effects to people's lives, including students. This article examines the relationship between the use of social networks and students' mental health. By using a convenient sampling method of 383 full-time students at Dalat University, the research results show that the use of social networking sites (Facebook, Zalo, Instagram, Tiktok) is harmful to students' mental health. In particular, Instagram and Tiktok are more harmful than Facebook and Zalo. In particular, frequent use of Instagram at night tends to lead to symptoms of anxiety (very severe), depression (severe) and stress (moderate) in students, and time spent on social media tends to increase students' stress levels. This suggests many policy implications for network operators, managers and students themselves.