Final week Cleveland Browns’ quarterback Baker Mayfield introduced that he could be leaving social media for the foreseeable future – citing the poisonous surroundings he had confronted after a tumultuous season. The Heisman Trophy winner, who was chosen by the Browns’ first total within the 2019 NFL Draft, is simply the newest athlete to throw within the towel in terms of social media platforms.

Right this moment, it’s all too widespread for athletes and celebrities to seek out themselves within the crosshairs from critics – and lots of instances it may be extraordinarily private. Any such criticism impacts all individuals on a psychological stage and athletes really feel it as a lot as anybody else.

“It impacts them the identical manner it impacts anybody else,” defined Tom Kannon, DNP, PMHNP-BC, assistant dean of the On-line Graduate Nursing and assistant professor at Regis School.

“Fixed criticism can lead to adverse self-talk, lowered vanity, frustration, irritability,” warned Kannon. “If that continues lengthy sufficient then it may result in despair and anxiousness.”

Whereas very profitable individuals are inclined to have good helps and coping mechanisms already established – and that may assist bolster them in opposition to such negativity – if inundated with it lengthy sufficient, it is going to erode even the strongest psyche.

“For some individuals, the criticism can lead to decrease self-appreciation and elevated self-defeating ideas,” added Kannon. “For others, it may probably create synthesis for refocusing and ‘rising to the problem’ to show their critics fallacious. A big a part of how that goes relies on the particular person’s view of themselves, their self-concept.”

Many people might prefer to imagine we do not care what different individuals consider us, however that always is not the case. For an athlete who’s within the highlight the adverse feedback could be unattainable to flee.

“Criticism can have an effect on individuals mentally and behaviorally,” famous Dr. Nathaniel N. Ivers, affiliate professor and chair, Division of Counseling, Wake Forest College. “It could contribute to emotions of despair and anxiousness, in addition to result in decrease vanity. It can also have an effect on how individuals view and relate to others, reminiscent of elevated emotional reactivity in direction of or isolation from others, in addition to elevated defensiveness.”

Social media makes it simpler than ever for followers – and critics alike – to tear down athletes like by no means earlier than. Baker Mayfield noticed the necessity to step again from the dangerous commentary he was being uncovered to on the platforms.

The Schadenfreude Impact

One of many largest issues at this time is that social media makes it really easy for people to come back below such private assaults on a public platform.

“There’s a psychological idea known as Schadenfreude that means that individuals generally tend to seek out pleasure in studying about, witnessing, or taking part in one other particular person’s troubles or failures,” added Ivers. “In reality, research recommend that people with decrease vanity are inclined to expertise better pleasure in witnessing somebody’s humiliation or failures than do people with increased vanity. A few of the vitriol that skilled athletes, politicians, and celebrities face within the media and on social media could be defined by Schadenfreude. People with low vanity are partaking in an ill-fated try to bolster their psychological equanimity by knocking another person down.”

Whereas Schadenfreude exists in all relational settings, social media may present individuals unprecedented entry to high-profile individuals.

“It is vital that individuals defend themselves from poisonous environments that degrade their sense of self value and psychological well-being,” stated Ivers. “It might nonetheless harm athletes or excessive profile people to know that individuals assume negatively about them and are seemingly speaking about them on social media, however the impact can be lower than if they’re consuming the negativity instantly and continuously.”

A Superstar, A Model

The place the problem turns into extra difficult – particularly for athletes – is that they’re greater than an individual at instances. They’re a model ambassador, and a part of their livelihood comes from their potential to market merchandise. As social media is used to advertise stated manufacturers, it may be troublesome for the athletes to retreat from these platforms.

“Baker Mayfield is a human being, entitled to many freedoms, however he’s additionally an expert athlete and a model,” defined Melissa Davies, Ph.D., assistant professor of Sport Administration at Ohio College.

“He represents his personal model, the Browns, and the NFL, in addition to different firms he works to endorse,” stated Davies. “Every of those partnerships are confirmed by way of contractual settlement which dictate the exact relationship and duties owed between Mayfield and the group. On the one hand then, Mayfield should think about his personal well-being and that of his household, whereas weighing the contractual agreements and incomes potential he has as a public persona.”

Manufacturers recurrently pay giant sums to work with skilled athletes, who then endorse their merchandise by way of promoting of their commercials, print and digital adverts, and on social media. Generally these manufacturers may have athletes seem on their firm social media pages, nevertheless extra generally at this time, the model pays the athlete or superstar to submit the commercial or endorsement on the superstar’s social media pages as a type of influencer advertising and marketing.

“The manufacturers then acquire the benefit of getting in entrance of the athlete’s giant and focused following,” stated Davies. “Whereas these contracts could be profitable to complement athlete’s different streams of earnings, having and fascinating in social media shouldn’t be one of many Cleveland Browns or the NFL’s contractual obligations for athletes. It seems then that Mayfield has weighed his personal incomes potential on social media with the chance to cut back pressure in his private life and opted out.”

Time Out – However Will It Assist?

For Mayfield he might tune out of social media, however at this time it’s unattainable to flee what is alleged – seemingly much more than attempting to keep away from TV or the newspaper. In reality, information of Mayfield’s departure from social media has solely solid him within the highlight once more – the place articles reminiscent of this one now give attention to the explanations. Even those that might not have adopted soccer might instantly know the troubles he confronted on and off the sector this season.

Nonetheless, departing social media may current some advantages for Mayfield – in addition to others who’re discovering the platforms to be extra adverse than optimistic.

“Leaving social media can positively have a optimistic affect on the person,” stated Kannon. “Having any negativity eliminated out of your life can decrease stress, very similar to the outdated adage ‘out of sight, out of thoughts.’ One of many hardest issues for elite athletes and high-profile individuals to do is to discover a technique to depart all of the adverse feedback behind, since they may nonetheless greater than seemingly nonetheless see it on TV, in newspapers/magazines, and the Web on the whole not simply social media.”

By taking a break from the social platforms, Mayfield will not face the deluge of negativity.

“(He may) nonetheless concentrate on the criticisms however the profit could be two-fold,” Kannon continued. “One, publicity to the criticism would positively be lowered; two criticisms in newspapers, magazines, information/TV reveals would have an identification to go together with the criticism as a substitute of it coming from some anonymous supply which permits the particular person to extra precisely weigh the credulity of the remark.”