An Adlerian Approach to Preventing Vicarious Trauma From Prolonged Exposure to Social Media

ABSTRACT: There is evidence to suggest that social media can have traumatizing effects on its viewers, particularly in areas of documented warfare, with direct effects on the average citizen in a country at war. Given social media’s ability to connect any place in the world today to any other, users can become immersed in global issues, including the reporting of news related to war. As social beings, individuals play different roles during times of warfare—they can create media to spread political messages, consume the media, or share the media—all of which essentially contribute to the consumption of a significant amount of war-related media. Any individual continuously exposed to such media has the potential to undergo psychological distress, such as vicarious trauma. This article outlines how media play a role in the impact of the invasion of Ukraine on its viewers’ mental health. Using an Adlerian lens, it also addresses methods for preventing vicarious trauma for social media users and leaders of social-media- oriented businesses through an exploration of values such as community feeling, Social Interest, goal-directedness, social justice, and alleviation of a sense of inferiority.