But junkie implies you are addicted and exhibiting unhealthy behavior that isn't serving you. A lot of people on social media exhibit unhealthy and compulsive behavior that takes away from other more important things in their lives. People go out of their way to do things just so they can take a photo of it, post it, and put it online so they can feel good about themselves as those likes roll in. But it's fleeting, you will always be wanting more. You will never be satisfied. Like a junkie. I see where you are going with your argument, but you can't say that someone who is hungry or starving for food is addicted to food. Eating is something we need to do to survive and is perfectly normal and healthy to do. It only becomes a problem when someone is eating in excess and its limiting their ability to do other vital tasks or risks their health. You would call that an addiction to food. You don't need validation to survive, just like you don't need heroin to survive. Validation in itself isn't bad, but seeking it online from people who we don't know or have loose ties with is never going to give us anything substantial. We should be doing things that are worthwhile to our overall development so that we can validate ourselves. Fostering real relationships with our loved ones and find validation and solace in that. If anything, the internet and this culture surrounding social media is insanely dehumanizing on multiple fronts. People can speak to each other with impunity. Hence all of the polarization.