shot-button
E-paper E-paper
Home > Lifestyle News > Health And Fitness News > Article > Posting on social media about mental health It can affect your job prospects

Posting on social media about mental health? It can affect your job prospects

Updated on: 09 October,2023 10:17 PM IST  |  New York
IANS |

According to a study, discussing mental health issues on social media can affect the way potential employers view job applicants

Posting on social media about mental health? It can affect your job prospects

Image for representational purposes only. Photo Courtesy: iStock

While it may be healthy to discuss mental health challenges on social media platforms, it can affect the way potential employers view job applicants, according to a study.


Researchers from North Carolina State University set out to determine the extent to which posts about mental health on the job platform LinkedIn affected perceptions of an individual's personality and future performance in the workplace. 


In the study, they involved 409 professionals with hiring experience and also made them hear an audio interview of the candidate, based on which they were asked about the job candidate’s personality and future performance in the workplace


The results, published in the Journal of Business and Psychology, showed that people who saw the LinkedIn post about mental health challenges viewed the job candidate as being less emotionally stable and less conscientious. 

The interview also did not affect the views of participants about the job candidate's conscientiousness. In other words, the perceptions evaluators had after seeing the LinkedIn profile largely persisted throughout the interview, the researchers said.

"People are often encouraged to discuss their mental health struggles on social media with the goal of reducing the stigma associated with mental health challenges," said Lori Foster, co-author of a paper on the study and a professor of psychology at North Carolina State University.

"We think reducing stigma around mental health is extremely important, but our study suggests that mental health posts on platforms such as LinkedIn could have unforeseen consequences for people disclosing their mental health challenges."

According to Jenna McChesney, assistant professor of psychology at Meredith College: "It's important for people to take that into consideration when determining whether to share their mental health experiences online."

However, "our findings don't mean people should refrain from posting about anxiety and depression on LinkedIn," said McChesney, who worked on the study while a grad student at NC State.

This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever

"Exciting news! Mid-day is now on WhatsApp Channels Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!

Register for FREE
to continue reading !

This is not a paywall.
However, your registration helps us understand your preferences better and enables us to provide insightful and credible journalism for all our readers.

Mid-Day Web Stories

Mid-Day Web Stories

This website uses cookie or similar technologies, to enhance your browsing experience and provide personalised recommendations. By continuing to use our website, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy. OK