World Mental Health Day 2026: Understanding how emotions spread through social media

Can online interactions reinforce negative emotions? And how can we better measure the relationship between social media and mental health?

Dr Kurt Marais, a lecturer in the Department of Logistics who recently earned his doctorate in operations research at Stellenbosch University, investigated these questions through research into depression-related content on Reddit and simulated interactions on Twitter (now X).

His study produced a depression-specific sentiment lexicon, designed to identify language associated with depression more accurately than general sentiment analysis tools. Using an agent-based simulation model, he also explored how repeated exposure to similar negative emotions can reinforce and intensify these feelings over time, particularly among people experiencing depression.

The findings highlight the importance of understanding emotional dynamics in digital spaces, and provide insights that could help researchers, mental health practitioners and platform developers promote online well-being.

Shared for Mental Health Awareness Month in South Africa and World Mental Health Day (10 October).