Nearly 100 percent of Swedes of all ages use social media, according to the report Swedes and the internet from the Internet Foundation. The younger the group, the more time spent on the platforms.
However, very many would rather do something else with their time. 40 percent say they often feel that they waste too much time on social media. Even here, the figure increases among younger groups. For women born in the 1980s or later, the figure is over 60 percent.
If so many people feel bad, why don't we just stop scrolling?
We have the world's best behavioral scientists who are polishing the algorithms at these companies, says Måns Jonasson and continues:
The playing field is extremely uneven. At the same time, we see seeds of self-insight. Among the youngest, fewer use Tiktok, for example.
Worst for young women
The report shows, just like other research and studies have shown in recent years, that it is young women who are affected the most by prolonged time on social media. Young women feel less attractive and think their lives are less happy when they compare themselves to others on social media.
Jonasson points out that the result is serious, even though it is known since before.
Another thing that stands out as alarming is that one-quarter of all young men have been subjected to harassment or hate speech. More studies are needed to find the details, but a guess is that it often involves gaming environments.
Conspiracy theory
Another part that stands out among Swedes' attitudes towards the internet and its possibilities is their stance on surveillance. 70 percent are indeed positive towards camera surveillance with facial recognition in public places, for crime-fighting purposes. At the same time, 63 percent say they believe their phones are eavesdropping on them.
This is a very Swedish attitude. We are more uncomfortable with Google or Meta taking part in our data and conversations than the state doing it, says Jonasson.
The phone listening to you is, however, the biggest conspiracy theory out there that people actually believe in.
But isn't there a little truth to it?
There is no grain of truth to it. It is possible to monitor data sent to different servers, and nothing is visible there. The big companies already know so much about us, plus people forget what they've searched for or what target group they belong to.
The report Swedes and the internet is conducted by the Internet Foundation, which is an independent business-driven foundation. The survey has been conducted since 2000, since 2010 under the Internet Foundation's auspices, and is based on the Novus Sweden Panel.
This year's report shows, among other things, that...
... 33 percent of high school students have social media accounts that their parents are not aware of (23 percent of middle school students).
... 40 percent often feel that they waste too much time on social media. For women born in the 1980s or later, the figure is over 60 percent.
... 44 percent of women born in the 90s and 43 percent of those born in the 00s feel less attractive due to comparisons on social media.
... between every fifth and every fourth woman born between 1980-2000 feels unsuccessful with their life when they compare with others on social media.
... 62 percent use only free media on the internet.
... 70 percent think camera surveillance with facial recognition in public places should be allowed to facilitate crime-fighting. Younger generations and those who vote left are more skeptical.
... 63 percent believe their mobile is eavesdropping on them.
