Memes and Social

Media as a Way to
Escape Depression

Group 2: Getes , Aldave , Badiang , Evangelita , Quiazon

CHAPTER 1: THE PROBLEM
AND ITS BACKGROUND
Introduction

 Memes in the modern language is described as anything with dark

or sarcastic humor to make fun about anything of common social
norms stereotypes. Memes are first born in the year 2003 in online
forum boards like 4chan and 2chan(nii-chan) and is usually dark or
sarcastic if not, it is usually about anime or cartoons.
 Memes with its original dark, sarcastic humor and anime/cartoon
contents are born in an online forum and is something that only
geeks and nerds thing to an easily understandable entertaining
thing for the common people.
 Social media on the other hand is a new form of communication
born in early 2000’s like Friendster however social media is not only
for communication purposes only as it evolved to a diverse
medium of entertainment and source of information with
Facebook being founded in 2003 and is still the most popular
social media platform today.
Background of The Study

 Depression is a common and serious medical illness that negatively

affects how you feel, the way you think and how you act.
Fortunately, it is also treatable. Depression causes feelings of
sadness and/or a loss of interest in activities once enjoyed. It can
lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems and can
decrease a person’s ability to function at work and at home.
 Depression has the following symptoms: sadness, anxiety, isolation,
loneliness, lack of interest, insomnia/hypersomnia, lack of appetite
and lastly the most disturbing, suicidal thoughts.
 Teenagers from 15-20 years old suffering from depression tends to
stay online than interacting with other people in real life.
 In recent studies results shows that people with depression often
finds the social media as a temporary escape or therapy to their
depression.
 By staying in their own social media accounts, they find other
people in the same situation like them and talk, share their
experiences and sympathize with each other and in doing so not
only they do retain their communication and social skills that is
often lost by most people suffering depression but their feeling of
anxiety and loneliness are filled because they feel a lot
comfortable in talking and sharing their experiences with people
who also understands them and there’s n[[[[o threat of being
judged by others which actually leads to the isolation of the
people suffering from depression.
 Memes on the other hand is a way for depressed people to vent
their dissatisfaction and suicidal thoughts which ironically makes
them more depressed but in doing so they’re suppressing the
thoughts of other people suffering depression like them and with
the popularity of memes today it also raises awareness about
depression which is often a taboo to discus
Theoretical Framework

 Beck's (1967) Theory

One major cognitive theorist is Aaron Beck. He studied people
suffering from depression and found that they appraised events in a
negative way.
Beck (1967) identified three mechanisms that he thought were
responsible for depression:
 The cognitive triad (of negative automatic thinking)
 Negative self-schemas
 Errors in Logic (i.e. faulty information processing)
 The cognitive triad are three forms of negative (i.e. helpless and
critical) thinking that are typical of individuals with depression:
namely negative thoughts about the self, the world and the future.
These thoughts tended to be automatic in depressed people as
they occurred spontaneously.
 For example, depressed individuals tend to view themselves as
helpless, worthless, and inadequate. They interpret events in the
world in an unrealistically negative and defeatist way, and they
see the world as posing obstacles that can’t be handled. Finally,
they see the future as totally hopeless because their worthlessness
will prevent their situation improving.
 Beck believed that depression prone individuals develop a
negative self-schema. They possess a set of beliefs and
expectations about themselves that are essentially negative and
pessimistic. Beck claimed that negative schemas may be
acquired in childhood as a result of a traumatic event.
Experiences that might contribute to negative schemas include:
Death of a parent or sibling. Parental rejection, criticism,
overprotection, neglect or abuse. Bullying at school or exclusion
from peer group
Statement of The Problem

 How many students consider themselves depressed?

 Does memes makes you happy and smile when in a stressful
situation?
 How many teenagers uses memes to relieve stress?
 Can you relate to ironic memes about depression?
 Does communicating online makes it easier to talk about your
problems?
Objectives of The Study

 To know the number of students suffer from depression.

 Determine if there is a relationship of memes to the depressed
students.
 To determine the number of teenagers who uses memes to
relieve their stress.
 To determine if they can relate to ironic memes about
depression.
 To know if they can communicate well through online about
their problems
Conceptual Framework
Significance of the Study

 Parents. The result of this study could serve as a reference to check the
psychological condition of their child based on their child’s performance if
he or she is suffering from depression.
 Guidance Counselor. The result of this study could help identify the reason
of a student’s sudden change in behavior if the said student might be a
victim of bullying.
 Teachers. The result of this study could help identify the reason for a
student’s sudden drop of academic and extracurricular performance if the
said student.
 Students. This study serves as an eye opener that depression exist and is not
something to be ashamed of and or something to be the reason shun other
people suffering from depression.
 Future Researcher. The result of this study can serve as basis for further study
on depression and ways to recover or help people suffering from
depression.
 CHAPTER 2 : REVIEW OF
RELATED LITERATURE AND
STUDIES
Foreign STUDY

Of all the wonderful, and maybe not so wonderful, gifts the internet has
brought us in the last two decades is the meme. This little tidbit of
information is like an electronic postcard that travels all over the digital
world as quickly or slowly as those who view it choose to propagate it.
Memes are a way for us to share our thoughts, feelings, opinions, and humor
with the world. We can create original memes or just pass along ones that
speak to us. We can view them and share them with all of our online
friends, or just pass it to one or two of those we know to whom the meme
best relates.
Memes have been around literally since the dawn of the internet, but their
popularity today is due to the overwhelming malleability found in their very
nature. Memes can be just pictures, video clips, just words, or a
combination of all three. They can be sent via email, text, chat, and social
media. They are easy to make, and a valuable tool for self-expression in an
increasingly multi-media saturated world.
For those of us who struggle with heavy issues in our lives, memes can
be an important tool for self-expression. Among the millions of memes
floating around on the internet, funny anxiety memes are readily
abundant in that mix. Memes allow those suffering from anxiety and
depression to poke a little fun at ourselves, to relate to others, and to
help each other understand the truth of anxiety behind the humor.

It's no wonder memes are so popular. After all, laughter is absolutely

the best medicine; there's no doubt about that. Numbers of scientific
studies conducted in the last thirty years have confirmed the many
positive physiological benefits of humor according to Psychology
Today. The more we laugh, the longer we live and the less stress we
feel on a daily basis.
Humor therapy is a real thing. Humor can be incorporated into official
therapy sessions, or prescribed as part of an at-home practice in de-
stressing. Laughing about all of the funny and not so funny things in
life contributes to the immune system's ability to function, and
combats stress levels in our body.
While the concept of the meme has been around for some time, its
popularity has been propelled forward by leaps and bounds by
social media. The power of social media is immense. It can spark
social movements in a fraction of the time massive societal
changes took to form in the past, before the digital age.
It can divide us by highlighting all the differences we have with
each other, subjecting ourselves to judgment and disassociation.
But, it can also unite us by gaining an appreciation for each other's
struggles and helping us all find common ground.
Above all, it serves as a lightning fast tool for communication that
we can use for good or for bad. Regarding relating to others, the
use of social media to spread funny memes that let us find humor in
some of our biggest problems, helps us identify with each other and
see that many of us suffer from the same problems.
Why can funny anxiety memes be particularly useful for someone
living with anxiety? Well, many of us who deal with anxiety on a
daily basis, particularly social anxiety, have a hard time connecting
with others much of the time. Humor is the great uniting factor.
When we laugh together, we automatically form a common
connection. Humor has the power to bring the most unlikely people
together. We use it to poke fun at life and make it through tough
situations.
LOCAL STUDY

Filipinos flood social media with jokes and memes to look on the
bright side.
Flash floods, tangled traffic and soggy socks are a few things that
make the rainy season a miserable time for Metro Manila
residents.
But some budding creative’s are keeping their cool and looking
to the bright side by providing memes and jokes for
entertainment.
Memes for a
rainy day
As Filipinos brace for
another rainy day in the
city, social media
becomes the go-to
avenue for channeling
one’s frustration.
FOREIGN LITERATURE

 Depression memes are becoming popular as people learn more

about what it’s like to suffer from depression. With the growing
awareness, some are even more comfortable talking about their
depression. Not only that, they’re finding fun ways to express what
it’s like to suffer from depression. Funny depression memes have
become increasingly popular over the last few years and are
surprisingly accurate portrayals about what it is like to suffer from
depression.

 Most people who suffer from depression go through a period of

time in which they the need to convince others that they are not
depressed. Acting like everything is fine (putting on a fake smile)
takes its toll, but it’s something that is common for those who suffer
from depression.
 While people mean well, without proper understanding and
empathy it can be easy to give misguided advice to a person
who is depressed.
 When feeling depressed, it’s not uncommon for a person to isolate
themselves from the world and from the people who love them. It
can be hard to believe that others want to be there for them,
even if they intellectually know there are people who care deeply
for them and want them to be well.
 One of the lies about depression is that if you just do things that
make you happy, then you won’t be depressed. Major depression
is not just sadness, and there is no quick fix. It’s a mental illness.
Being patient, empathic and understanding of a person’s
depression does more for a depressed person than just trying to
make him or her happy.
Depression can sneak up
on you at any time. Even
when everything is going
well in life and there are
many reasons to feel
content and happy,
depression can rear its
ugly head. That’s because
major depression is a
psychiatric condition that
has nothing to do with
how much money you
have or how many parties
you’re invited to.
If you have major
depression, here’s a
crippling depression
meme I’m sure you’ll
understand. People with
depression rarely show
how they feel. Someone
may look fine on the
outside but is hurting and
suffering on the inside.
Like the tree in this
depression meme, people
who suffer from depression
often feel empty inside.
This can result from feeling
numb, expendable,
unseen, unheard or
unvalued.
This funny depression
meme may bring a
knowing smile to your face
because you understand
that insomnia,
hypersomnia and sleep
issues are common
symptoms of depression.
Depression causes chronic
fatigue, so no matter how
much you sleep, you’re still
exhausted during the day.
Part of the stigma of
depression is people with
depression are sometimes
depicted as being lazy
and weak. While
depression is a debilitating
illness, even people who
live with it sometimes
question themselves: “Is it
the depression or am I just
plain lazy?”
LOCAL LITERATURE

 When it comes to local social media behaviour, Filipino

netizens have proven that humour persists even in serious
times. These memes have captured the overall gist of Pinoy life
and have become somewhat of a “reflection” of how we
react to certain issues, political or otherwise. With a
combination of wit, creativity, sarcasm and mind-blowing
editing skills, count on Pinoys to put fun even in news segments,
movies, advertisements and viral videos.
Wala na, finish na
In one of Aksyon TV5’s segments,
25-year-old Bethoven Delmar Jr
was arrested for attempting to rape
a woman. When asked why he did
such horrible act, he proudly
admitted that he was under the
influence of drugs and alcohol.
Despite what happened, Delmar
was still thankful, “Swerte pa ‘ko
kasi hindi pa si Duterte ‘yang
nakaupo. Eh kung si Duterte, wala
na finish na.”

Now his line has been used as

template for everything #relatable:
Advance ako mag-
isip
Albert Mangapit, a 25-year-old call
center agent, was arrested during an
undercover operation against illegal
drugs. Aside from flaunting his
“wealth”, Mangapit said that the act
was done out of pure intention, and
that is to help the Philippines.
“There’s a lot of things you can do
about the money from the Kush, 1.5
per kilo. I can change the Philippines. I
can run for politics. Advance ako
mag-isip. Look at Antipolo, how much
is the land, land area of Antipolo?
Unused. Good for farming marijuana.”

Now it has been used in different

relatable contexts:
Bakit ako matatakot?
Seized by the authorities
due to illegal possession
and discharge of firearm,
a drunk man named Jun
Calumpiano dared
president-elect Rodrigo
Duterte to a gunfight.
“Duterte, mag-draw tayo!
Bigyan mo ako ng baril,
Sige, walang problema.
Ba’t aka matatakot?!”
 CHAPTER 3:
METHODOLOGY
Research Design

 The research was designed to know the number of depressed

teenagers ages 16-18yrs.old in St. Jude College of Dasmariñas
Cavite and to prove that memes especially the social media
can be used as a therapy to subdue the effect of depression.
Locale of the study

 This research was conducted at St. Jude College Cavite,

located at Salitran IV, City of Dasmariñas, Cavite.
Instrumentation

 The instruments used to perform this research are various online

references and studies and a researcher made questionnaire
in a yes or no format.
Methods and Procedures

 This research was done by searching from various online and

offline references and by doing a survey by having the
respondents from the ICT answer a researcher made
questionnaire.
Sampling Technique

 This study used random sampling so that the result for effects of
memes and social media to escape depression of Grade 11
ICT students of St .Jude College of Dasmariñas Cavite is fair.
 CHAPTER 4:
PRESENTATION AND
ANALYIS OF DATA
TABLE 1.1 DISTRIBUTION OF
RESOINDENTS BY AGE

15-16 6 10% 2

17-18 50 83.33% 1

19-20 4 6.67% 3

TOTAL 60 100%
TABLE 1.2 GENDER OF THE
RESPONDENTS

GENDER FREQUENCY PERCENTAGE RANK

Male 22 36.67% 2

Female 38 63.33% 1

Total 60 100%
TABLE 2.1 SUMMARY OF
RESPONSES OF THE RESPONDENTS
1.Do you consider yourself
depressed?

OPTIONS PERCENTAGE

YES 30 50%

NO 30 50%

TOTAL 60 100%
2. Does memes makes you happy and
smile when in a stressful situation?

OPTIONS PERCENTAGE

YES 58 96.67%

NO 2 3.33%

TOTAL 60 100%
3. Does memes really helps
you to relieve your stress?

OPTIONS PERCENTAGE

YES 56 93.33%

NO 4 6.67%

TOTAL 60 100%
4.Can you relate to ironic
memes about depression?

OPTIONS PERCENTAGE

YES 54 90%

NO 6 10%

TOTAL 60 100%
5.Does communicating online makes it
easier to talk about your problems?

OPTIONS PERCENTAGE

YES 58 96.67%

NO 2 3.33%

TOTAL 60 100%
CHAPTER 5: SUMMARY
OF FINDINGS,
CONCLUTION AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

 Teen respondents from ages 17-18 years old tends to suffer

from depression, then people aging from 19-20 years old has
the lowest frequency of people suffering from depression.
 Females tend to suffer more from depression than males.
 The number of depressed people form non-depressed people
are just about the same.
 All respondents use social media and have their own social
media account.
 All the respondents know about the existence of memes.
 All of the respondents use social media networks for entertainment
purposes.
 Majority of the respondents understand that a certain meme is
about depression and can somehow relate to it while the
remaining minority of the respondents don’t understand and or
can’t relate to memes which concerns depression.
CONCLUSION

 In this research the researchers was able to provide a proof

that memes and the usage of social media can be used as
temporary substitute for a therapy to subdue the effects of
depression and as a follow up therapy after a proper medical
treatment to on a recovery from depression.
RECOMMENDATION

 The study’s central focus is the lived experiences of teenagers

that has depression, who uses memes and social media to
escape depression the recommendations were based on the
summary of findings and the conclusion of the study
For Parents
 That they will understand the attitude of their children.
 That they will understand the problem of their children.

For Teacher
 That they will be aware on the student’s condition.
 That they will be careful of their words towards the students

For Depressed Teenagers

 That they will not let the sadness take over them
 That they can express their feelings through social media.
 That they will cope negative criticisms against them
For Normal Teenagers
o That they will not judge, the teenagers that has depression
o That they will support and cheer up the teenagers who has
depression.

Future Researcher
o That they will know the difference between depressed and
non-depress students/teenagers.
o That they will greatly benefit from this research study.