Digital Social Contagion Effects
How Social Media Can Shape Behavior and Spread Psychiatric Disorders
- Speaker:
- Nicholas Kardaras, PhD, LCSW-R
- Duration:
- 2 Hours 07 Minutes
- Language:
- Presented in EN, subtitles in EN and FR, handouts in EN and FR
- Format:
- Audio and Video
- Copyright:
-
Jul 12, 2023
- Product Code:
- POS059467
- Media Type:
- Digital Seminar
Description
Join Dr. Nicholas Kardaras, best-selling author, internationally renowned speaker and an expert on mental health, addiction, and the impacts of our digital age, as he guides you through how screen time and digital media are leading to more than just depression, but the spread of a variety of psychiatric disorders via a social contagion effect.
You’ll be able to discern the difference between genuine psychiatric disorders like Borderline Personality Disorder, Dissociative Identity Disorder, and Gender Dysphoria from the social media-driven variants that lead to clients mimicking behaviors and symptoms that they’ve absorbed from psychiatrically unwell influencers. In addition, we’ll look at school shooters, incels and political extremists as manifestations of digital social contagions.
In our new digital age, where kids, teens and young people are immersed in digital media like never before, this course is an essential guide for any clinician to better understand and treat these issues.
Credit
Program Information
Planning Committee Disclosure - No relevant relationshipsAll members of the PESI, Inc. planning committee have provided disclosures of financial relationships with ineligible organizations and any relevant non-financial relationships prior to planning content for this activity. None of the committee members had relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies or other potentially biasing relationships to disclose to learners. For speaker disclosures, please see the faculty biography.
NOTE: Tuition includes one free CE Certificate (participant will be able to print the certificate of completion after passing the online post-test (80% passing score) and completing the evaluation). Instructional methods will include PowerPoint, didactic lecture, and others.
Continuing Education Information: Listed below are the continuing education credit(s) currently available for this non-interactive self-study package. Program content is reviewed periodically per accrediting board rules for currency and appropriateness for credit. Credit approvals are subject to change. Please note, your licensing board dictates whether self-study is an acceptable form of continuing education, as well as which credit types are acceptable for continuing education hours. Please refer to your licensing board's rules and regulations. If your profession is not listed, please contact your licensing board to determine your continuing education requirements and check for reciprocal approval.
For other credit inquiries not specified below, please contact info@pesi.com or 800-844-8260 before purchase.
Materials that are included in this course may include interventions and modalities that are beyond the authorized practice of your profession. As a licensed professional, you are responsible for reviewing the scope of practice, including activities that are defined in law as beyond the boundaries of practice in accordance with and in compliance with your profession's standards.
For Planning Committee disclosures, please see the statement above. For speaker disclosures, please see the faculty biography.
Earn up to 2.0 CE hours. Please see below, for more details, as credit amounts vary by jurisdiction and profession.
PESI, Inc. is approved by the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association to offer continuing education for counsellors and psychotherapists. PESI, Inc. maintains responsibility for the program. This self-study activity is approved for 2.0 credit hours.

PESI, Inc., #1062, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: January 27, 2026 - January 27, 2029. Social workers completing this course receive 2.0 Clinical continuing education credits.
Course Level: Intermediate Format: Recorded asynchronous distance. Full attendance is required; no partial credits will be offered for partial attendance.
Canadian Social Workers: Canadian provinces may accept activities offered by providers approved by the ASWB ACE program for ongoing professional development.
This self-study activity qualifies for 2.0 continuing education clock hours as required by many national and local licensing boards and professional organizations. Save your activity advertisement and certificate of completion, and contact your own board or organization for specific requirements.
Handouts
| File type | File name | Number of pages | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Digital Contagion Manual (1.8 MB) | 19 Pages | Available after Purchase | |
| Illinois Educator Self study instructions (15.4 KB) | Available after Purchase | ||
| Illinois Educator Evaluation Form (1.2 MB) | Available after Purchase | ||
| Digital Contagion Manual - French (1.8 MB) | 19 Pages | Available after Purchase | |
| Digital Contagion Manual - Italian (1.8 MB) | 19 Pages | Available after Purchase | |
| Digital Contagion Manual - German (1.8 MB) | 19 Pages | Available after Purchase | |
| Digital Contagion Manual - Spanish (1.8 MB) | 19 Pages | Available after Purchase |
Speaker
Nicholas Kardaras, PhD, LCSW-R Related seminars and products
Nicholas Kardaras, PhD, LCSW-R, is a a best-selling author, internationally renowned speaker and an expert on mental health, addiction, and the impacts of our digital age. He has developed clinical treatment programs all over the country and is the founder and chief clinical officer of Maui Recovery in Hawaii, Omega Recovery in Austin, and the Launch House in New York.
Dr. Kardaras is a former clinical professor at Stony Brook Medicine where he specialized in teaching the neurophysiology and treatment of addiction. He has also taught neuropsychology at the doctoral-level and has worked closely in developing clinical protocols with Dr. Howard Shaffer, associate professor at Harvard Medical School and the director of their Division of Addiction.
Dr. Kardaras is the best-selling author of Glow Kids (St. Martin’s Press, 2016), has written for TIME magazine, Scientific American, Psychology Today, Salon, the NY Daily News, and Fox News, and has appeared on ABC’s 20/20, Good Morning America, the CBS Evening News, Fox & Friends, NPR, Good Day New York and in New York magazine and Vanity Fair. He was featured on the 2019 A&E TV Series Digital Addiction and his 2016 NY Post Op Ed “Digital Heroin” went viral with over six million views and shares.
Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Dr. Nicholas Kardaras is the CEO and Chief Clinical Officer of Omega Healthcare Group, and he is the founder of The National Institute for Digital Health and Wellness and the Austin Serenity Recovery Homes. He has an employment relationship with Stony Brook School of Social Welfare and maintains a private practice. Dr. Kardaras receives royalties as a published author. He receives a speaking honorarium and recording royalties from PESI, Inc. He has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Dr. Nicholas Kardaras has no relevant non-financial relationships.
Additional Info
Program Information
Access for Self-Study (Non-Interactive)Access never expires for this product.
For a more detailed outline that includes times or durations of time, if needed, please contact cepesi@pesi.com.
Questions?
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Objectives
- Assess if a client’s psychiatric disorder may be attributed to a "social contagion" acquired through excessive social media immersion.
- Recognize the concept of social contagion and demonstrate an understanding of its influence on individuals and communities.
- Utilize strategies and interventions to address and treat disorders influenced by social contagions rooted in social media immersion.
Outline
Assessments: Is it a Psychiatric Disorder or Digital Social Contagion Effect
- “Tik Tok Tourette’s” vs. Borderline Personality Disorder, Dissociative Identity Disorder, Gender Dysphoria
- Know whether social media is the cause
“Digital Extremism”
- The Way That Extremist Groups Target and Brainwash Vulnerable Teens and Young People.
Treating the New Disorders Influenced by Social Contagions
- The most current issues in mental health which are in the embryonic stage
Target Audience
- Psychologists
- Social Workers
- Counselors
- Marriage & Family Therapists
- Speech-Language Pathologists
- Occupational Therapists
- Occupational Therapy Assistants
- School Administrators
- Teachers/School-Based Personnel
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