Depression News 2016: Instagram Photos, Filters Can Tell If You're Depressed; Filter Meanings and Interpretations
An Algorithm on Instagram Can Spot Depression, Depressed Users
The photos on an Instagram account can be used to tell if the user is depressed or not according to a new research.
A newly invented algorithm can be used to analyze the Instagram feed, photos and even filters used to determine depression and the state of the user's mental health. The software was made by researchers from Harvard and University of Vermont who claim that it can be used to identify those with clinical depression.
Clinical Depression Identifier for Instagram
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Researchers looked at more than 40,000 Instagram photos and analyzed the metadata components of each photo. According to Mirror, using this technique, they were able to determine who among the 166 Instagram users had depression. The algorithm could identify mental illness markers among Instagram users.
Instagram Filters Markers of Depression, Mental Illness?
Researchers Andrew Reece and Chris Danforth stated on their paper that Instagram filters can determine the mental state of a person. Gizmodo notes that people with depression often used filters or posted photos that are darker or filtered with gray or black and white.
Instagram filter Inkwell which turns photos black and white was apparently often used by people with depression when posting on their Instagram feed. Meanwhile, people with no depression often used the Instagram filter Valencia which lightens the photo.
Upon deeper research, Instagram users in the study were asked to take questionnaires and were surveyed for clinical depression. The researchers also made them rate some photos from 0 to 5 to see how sad or happy they perceive the photos to be. The photos were also categorized by hue, saturation and number of people that were in it, Tech Times wrote.
Using the invented algorithm, researchers found that decreased brightness and saturation and increased hue predicted depression. They also found that Instagram filters are used differently by people with different mental states. It was noted that people with no depression were less likely to use Instagram filters at all.
Social Media Window to Depression, Mental State?
The researchers wrote on their report that their study gave evidence that social media profiles can portray the mental state including depression of an individual. These can also be identified with an algorithm as well. Danforth and Reece recommended that their algorithm can be useful in identifying people with clinical depression and this can be used to stage an early intervention.
