Technology, social media and mental health: Part 1 – contributions to psychiatry

This module, the first in a two-part series, examines the role of social media in mental health, including an overview of the development of the computer to the small, powerful, hand-held multi-functional devices that are now ubiquitous.

It looks at some of the benefits of social media and reviews the vast amount of information online and the implications of this for mental health and for professionals in the field.

The module also examines the implications of social media for clinicians as well as for patients, and considers how clinical practice and teaching are being affected by new modes of communication and connection.

To best view this module we recommend the latest version of internet browsers such as: Google Chrome, Firefox or Internet Explorer.

This module is published in joint commission with BJPsych Advances . We recommend that it read in accompaniment with the following article:

Melvyn W. B. Zhang et al. (2015) Smartphone apps in mental healthcare: the state of the art and potential developments. BJPsych Advances. Volume 21, Issue 5, pp. 354-358. Article .