It’s an early morning in Bryant University’s “From Asylums to Zoloft: The Sociology of Mental Health” course and Lecturer of Sociology Amanda Fontaine, Ph.D., has chosen to kick off the day’s lesson with a challenge. As the class considers social media’s implications for mental health, she explains that — while it’s an idea that’s often talked about — social media addiction has no formal definition or concrete diagnosis.
With zero official criteria for quantifying and establishing what social media addiction could look like, Fontaine tasks students with drawing upon their previous coursework to consider what indications of a social media use disorder would be. Hands pop up around the room as undergrads begin sharing suggestions:
“A shorter attention span,” argues one.
“Inability to stop looking at social media,” suggests another.
“Anxiety or negative moods,” a third offers.
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Fontaine writes their responses on the blackboard and, as it quickly fills, she notes that there’s a fundamental question at the center of their conversation: Responsibility.
The timing of their conversation happens to align with a landmark Superior Court decision implicated Meta and Google in a lawsuit that awarded $6 million in damages to a woman who claimed that her compulsive use of the company’s social platforms negatively affected her during childhood.
“Who has a responsibility to monitor and protect against problematic social media use? And whose fault is it when problematic behavior takes root?” asks Fontaine who proceeds to engage her students in a class-based mock trial.
Mental health through time, place
During their time in the course, students study the social dimensions of mental health by reviewing current research, engaging in critical discussions, and reflecting on their own views regarding mental health. The hope, explains Fontaine, is that by the end of the semester students will have a deeper and more holistic understanding of the subject.
“A lot of times, people think of mental health in terms of individual diagnoses and individual medications,” she says. “I want them to leave knowing the impact of mental health in ways they may not have taken stock of previously.”
To further that goal, the semester is broken into three major topics. Undergrads first analyze how mental health and illness have been conceptualized across time and place — such as its perception in Eastern versus Western culture — and how people have been (and continue to be) impacted by the ways we define mental illness. From there, Fontaine has them examine how contemporary circumstances, such as gender inequalities and the pandemic, have affected mental health in the present. In the last section of the course, undergrads study the different ways that mental illness has been treated over time.
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The culmination of their time together is a group project where students do an experiential deep dive into a current mental health-related issue. This year, some of undergrads’ topics included the impact of incarceration on individuals' mental health; Gen Z's experiences with mental health treatment and stigma, including the role of AI; and socioeconomic status, family composition, and social inequality's impact on mental health.
Noting that mental health has received increased attention recently, particularly post-pandemic, Fontaine believes that, as a society, people are becoming more aware of how social and cultural factors impact individuals’ internal lives and wellbeing.
“Having students craft projects around such contemporary topics allows them to more deeply and critically explore the areas of mental health that feel most relevant to them,” Fontaine says. “They are able to pursue greater knowledge and understanding of the things that shape their own lives and experiences, and they do so in a way that gives them hands-on research experience, including building and distributing surveys, conducting interviews, and analyzing different types of data."
Ethical issues and implications
As one of their last topics together, the class studies the phenomenon of medical aid in dying (MAiD).
Delving into the muddy ethical issues that surround this issue, undergrads talk about its implications with respect to mental health. Fontaine leads conversations about the history of MAiD, how legislation regarding the topic has evolved and contemporary perspectives held by the American public. Students are inquisitive — asking questions around medical ethics and taking the time to thoughtfully work through its many complexities.
“I want you to consider the role of the physician and particularly engage around this question,” begins Fontaine. “What would be the eligibility criteria for individuals to qualify for medical assistance and dying? And does that extend exclusively to physical health diagnoses, or is there room for seeing mental health-related diagnoses as eligible for physician-assisted death?
It’s a difficult and complicated topic — which makes it even more important that they have these discussions — and that students can form their own informed opinions.