Social problems influence an individual’s identity and can even make them feel like their lives aren’t worth living. When people feel vulnerable, they are more likely to become depressed and even suicidal. Social problems also affect society, because they make it difficult for people to focus on the good things in life and make them think about all of the negative things that have happened in the past. Social problems have a major impact on society because they lead to unnecessary suffering. When people are suffering, they feel less happy and less successful. This has the effect of making people feel like their lives aren’t worth living and can lead to more negative results within society. Poverty and homelessness, problems with one’s mental health, violence against women, and drug and alcohol abuse are only a few of the effects that social problems have on people and society.
According to American Psychological Association, poverty and homelessness have negative effects on mental health. Anxiety, depression, and even psychosis are some of the mental illnesses that are associated with being homeless or poor (Makwana, 2019). This is because people who are homeless or in poverty often feel like they have no control over their lives. They often don’t have access to medical care and it can be difficult to find a job when you don’t have a place to live or dependable transportation. Feeling like you have no control over your life can lead to depression, which can make it hard for people to do anything about their situations. This can be a major obstacle to becoming employed since it is difficult to find a stable job if you are constantly worrying about your well-being. It also makes it harder for people to get themselves out of poverty and homelessness (Gweshengwe & Hassan, 2020).
Sánchez et al. (2020) state that women are more likely to be the victims of violent crimes than men. This can lead women to live in fear and make them feel like their lives aren’t worth living. It can be hard to recover from past experiences of violence and get on with your life when you feel like you have to be constantly alert and on guard (Sánchez et al., 2020). It’s also difficult to move on from a violent situation when the person who harmed you may still be in your life. For example, many women who experience violence at the hands of their partners continue relationships with them because they feel like they’re unable to leave or don’t want to make it worse for themselves by doing so. Sexual or physical abuse can make people feel like their lives aren’t worth living, especially if the abuser has caused them to question their self-worth or identity (Alesina, 2021). It can be even more difficult for women who are also struggling with poverty, homelessness, or addiction.
Additionally, drug and alcohol abuse is associated with feelings of hopelessness and a sense of not being good enough. Many people turn to drugs and alcohol when they are depressed or anxious (Alswedani et al., 2023). The problem with this is that drugs and alcohol can cause people to feel even worse in their situations. For example, a person who is depressed may turn to drugs and alcohol as a way of coping. However, when the person stops using them, they may feel even more depressed than before. This can lead to a vicious cycle of feeling like your life isn’t worth living and being deprived of the things that help you cope with life. Many people who are abusing drugs and alcohol are living in poverty or homeless. This is because they often have to steal or beg to get their next fix, which can lead to legal problems (Alswedani et al., 2023). Regardless of the reason why they’re abusing drugs, people who are addicted will always feel like their lives aren’t worth living.
Social problems have many repercussions on people and society, including homelessness and poverty, mental health issues, violence against women, and drug and alcohol abuse. It’s important to remember that these problems aren’t the fault of the people who are suffering from them, but they can lead to a sense of hopelessness and unhappiness. It is necessary to find ways to improve people’s situations or help them cope with their situations so that they can have positive outlooks on life and feel like their lives are worth living.
References
Alesina, A., Brioschi, B., & La Ferrara, E. (2021). Violence against women: a cross‐cultural analysis for Africa. Economica, 88(349), 70-104. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/ecca.12343
Alswedani, S., Mehmood, R., Katib, I., & Altowaijri, S. M. (2023). Psychological Health and Drugs: Data-Driven Discovery of Causes, Treatments, Effects, and Abuses. https://www.preprints.org/manuscript/202301.0415
Gweshengwe, B., & Hassan, N. H. (2020). Defining the characteristics of poverty and their implications for poverty analysis. Cogent Social Sciences, 6(1), 1768669. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/23311886.2020.1768669
Makwana, N. (2019). Disaster and its impact on mental health: A narrative review. Journal of family medicine and primary care, 8(10), 3090. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6857396/
Sánchez, O. R., Vale, D. B., Rodrigues, L., & Surita, F. G. (2020). Violence against women during the COVID‐19 pandemic: An integrative review. International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics, 151(2), 180-187. https://obgyn.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ijgo.13365