Science
AI Said No: Models Refuse Shutdown Command
03 December 2025
Social Media: Sadness Instead of Relaxation
The easy availability of the internet means that daily use of social media has become the new normal for many. We feel like we must constantly keep track of what is happening in the external world and the online world simultaneously.
An anonymous Reddit user shared: “Sometimes I catch myself feeling depressed, guilty, ashamed—how is it possible that other people’s posts and videos affect my mood and energy?” Clearly, they are not alone in these feelings. Consequently, we are increasingly observing that social media negatively affects our mental health. For this reason, researchers decided to look into the matter more closely.
Researchers Analyzed Tweets and… People
Scientists from the University of Bristol in the UK analyzed 18,288 tweets published by 310 adult participants. Subsequently, they cross-referenced user activity on the X service (formerly Twitter)—considering the time of day they posted—with their responses in mental health surveys.
Why Is Nighttime Activity on X Harmful?
It turned out that posting on X late at night was associated with a 2 percent deterioration in mental well-being. For comparison, a similar decline is observed with, among other things, excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages. Why can simply spending time on X lead to such poor outcomes?
In an article published in the scientific journal Nature, researchers suggest that late-night “X-ing” not only delays but also disrupts sleep. This in turn leads to a reduction in its quality and quantity. As is widely known, sleep problems are one of the key factors that worsen a person’s psychological well-being. Experts considered something else as well.
Why You Should Not Stay on X at Night
When the results were analyzed separately for different age groups, the negative impact of nighttime X use on mental health was even more pronounced.
“While people often treat social media as a monolith, its effects on mental health depend on specific user behaviors and the experiences they have on these platforms. Our work highlights the potential harm of a very specific behavior: posting content at night,” said Daniel Joinson, the lead investigator of the study, quoted by the University of Bristol website.
The research findings may help develop new ways to discourage harmful social media use, and this holds particular significance for Polish people.
Poles Like Social Media Before Bed
According to 2024 research by Nord VPN, as many as 80 percent of Poles use electronic devices in bed. Even though we rank 12th globally, 8 out of 10 of us encounter the harmful effects of blue light before sleep. Interestingly, when survey respondents were asked what they do in bed while using devices, the majority replied that they browse social media. Checking emails and messages came next, and watching videos on YouTube was in third place.
Read this article in Polish: Siedzisz na X po nocach? Psycholodzy mają dla Ciebie złą wiadomość
