فهرست نشریات علمی دسترسی آزاد ایران

BACKGROUND: Lockdown was imposed as a preventive measure for coronavirus diseasepandemic. Social media was the most common tool available for the masses, including the 1styear medical students during the lockdown. The objectives of the present study were to determinethe extent of use of social media and the effects on mind‑body and social distancing.MATERIALS AND METHODS: It was mixed research conducted on 1st‑year medical studentsusing convenience sampling. The quantitative aspect of E‑survey was administered through Googleforms sent via E‑mail, and structured telephonic interview was conducted as a qualitative aspect onrandomly selected 10 students based on predecided interview questions. This study was reportedas per the Checklist for Reporting Results of Internet E‑Surveys. The analysis was performed usingpercentages and paired t‑test with significance at P < 0.05, Chi‑square test with Yate’s correction.Qualitative responses were analyzed using coding and categorization.RESULTS: The response rate was 88%. Time spent on social media for >4 h increased from 1.1% to47.72% during lockdown. Forty three (48.86%) of the students reported increased mood fluctuations.The relation between mood fluctuations and time spent on social media of >4 h was significant𝜒2 = 6.41 with P < 0.05. Average hours of sleep after using social media before lockdown increasedsignificantly from 6.68 h to 8.10 h during lockdown using paired t‑test, where “t” was 6.84. Therewas a positive impact on communication with friends and family.CONCLUSION: Due to the increased extent of use of social media during lockdown, negativemind‑body effects have surfaced but emerged as boon in terms of communication .