AndrewHirasawa

ProfessorPresnell

UWRT1104009

5,April17

HowSocialMediaisAffectingTeens

Fromchangingthewaysthatweorderfoodtothewaysthatwelookupinformation,

technologyshapeshowweliveourlives.Whenitcomestochildrenandteens,itischangingthe

waythattheygrowupandinteractwitheachothersocially.Nowadays,itisararesighttoseea

childwithoutasmartphoneorsomeotherdevicethatallowstheminstantaccesstotheinternet

andsocialmedia.Withthisfreedomtoconstantlycommunicatewitheachother,childrenare

growingupverydifferentlycomparedto510yearsago.Withsocietychangingfasterthanwe

canunderstandandstudyit,thereareboundtobeeffectsonyouththatweareunawareof.For

myinvestigation,Iwantedtoseewhateffectssocialmediahasondevelopingchildren,

specificallythoseintheirteens.

Mydecisiontofocusonteenswasduetomyinterestsinhowtechnologyaffectstheway

thatwegrowup.Manyofmyyoungercousinsandstepsiblingsareintheirearlyteensandlove

technology.Theyaremoreuptodateonthenewesttrendsinsocialmediaandnewtechnologies

thanIeverwasatthatage.Seeingastheybegantheirinterestinsocialmediafarbeforemypeers

andIdid,Ibegantowonderifthiswashavinganysignificanteffectontheirdevelopmentinto

youngadults.
InitialSearch

WhenIfirststartedmysearch,Ioptedforageneralinvestigationonwhateffectthat

socialmediawashavingonouryouth.ManyarticlesIfoundbroughtupmanyofthenegative

aspectsofsocialmediausebyteens.Forexample,onearticleIfound,HowUsingSocialMedia

AffectsTeenagersfromtheChildMindInstitute,detailedhowteensgrowingupsurroundedby

socialmediaaremorepronetohavelowerselfesteemandhigherlevelsofanxiety.Tobuildon

this,thearticlebringsupanotherproblem:kidsarenotlearninghowtohaveproperfacetoface

interactions.RachelEhmkequotesapsychologistwhostates,itputseverybodyinanonverbal

disabledcontext,wherebodylanguage,facialexpression,andeventhesmallestkindsofvocal

reactionsarerenderedinvisible.Thisproblemcomesintoplaywhenlookingatoneofthemore

dangerouseffectsofsocialmediausewithteens:cyberbullying.Whenplacedbehindascreen,it

isextremelyeasyforkidstobecrueltootherswithoutrealizingtheemotionaldamagesthattheir

actionsarehavingonthevictim.Thismayalsobeattributedtothelackofthedevelopmentof

empathyinchildrengrowingupusingsocialmedia.

Personally,Ihavenoticedthatteensseemtobeespeciallycruelandillmanneredonthe

internet,wheretheyarefreefromimmediateconsequence.Onvariousonlinevideogames,

cursingandinsultsarecommon.Oftentimes,Ifindthatplayersnoolderthanfourteenspout

horribleinsultsateachotheroverasimplegame.Althoughonlinevideogamesandsocialmedia

areverydifferentplatforms,theconnectionisclear.Whenkidsareabletocommunicatefreely
behindthebarrierofacomputerscreen,theybecomemuchcruelerthantheywouldeverbeface

toface.

Recurringtopics

Throughoutmyresearch,Ibegantocomeacrosssimilarthemesinthestudiesandarticles

thatIwasreading.Manyarticlesfocusedonthementaleffectsthatsocialmediaishavingon

teens,specificallythenegativeones.OnereoccurringtopicthatIcameacrosswassomething

calledFacebookdepression.Thisphenomenonistheideathatteens,oranyoneforthatmatter,

whospendslonghoursonsocialmediaandinveststhemselvesintoitarepronetodevelop

symptomsofdepression.OnearticleIfoundExploringFacebookDepressionbyRomeo

Vitelli(PhD.),backeduptheclaimthatyoungpeoplearedevelopingdepressionthroughsocial

mediafromnumerousstudies.Inonestudythathecitesapsychologiststatesthat25%of

collegestudentswithFacebookadmittofeelingdepressedattimes.Althoughthisconnection

couldseemfarfetched,ascollegestudentshavemanyotherstressesinlifethatcouldcontribute

tothisfeelingofdepression,thereissomethingtobesaidaboutthisconnection.Facebookforces

ustolookatotherswhomaybemoresuccessfulormoreattractivethantheuser.Thisfact

combinedwiththeconstantupdatesthatFacebookprovidescanleaduserstofeeljealousywhich

canthenleadtofeelingsofdepression.

OneproblemthatIhadwiththisarticlewasthatitfailedtoprovideanypositivesolutions

totheproblemathand.Whiletheclaimsthattheauthormakesareveryrealandshouldbetaken
intoconsideration,thereareobviouslycounterpointstobemadethattheauthorfailstobringup.

Forthisreason,IdecidedtodigdeeperintoFacebookdepression.

MysearchleadmetoanarticlefromNPRbyJohnBrooks,Facebook and

Mortality: Why your Incessant Joy Gives Me the Blues. Differing from my

previous findings, this article was written from the perspective of an adult

user of Facebook. Nevertheless, the article was still able to give me valuable

insight into my inquiry about Facebook depression. John Brooks begins by

narrating about an experience he had on social media, in which posts from

people he knew only as children made him realize his own mortality. Seeing

those he remembered as someone in his third grade class as a full grown

adult online made him face facts that he would rather ignore. While Brooks

experience probably does not relate to teens using social media, Brooks goes

on to speak about other ways that social media is negatively affecting the

mental health of its users. Citing research studies from the University of

Michigan, in which individuals who spent less time on Facebook seemed to

have higher levels of happiness. Also, when looking at users who spent long

periods of time on Facebook, the users seemed to be more prone to sadness

and depression. There was also an interesting difference in the active and

passive users, where active users are the ones who mostly share their lives

on social media while more passive users only take in the information.

Passive users tend to be more envious of others while browsing social media.

This could lead to other detrimental acts such as cyberbullying.

What should parents do?

Withsocialmediabeingsucharecentphenomenon,itsoftenthatparentshavetrouble

keepingupwitheverythingnewthattheirkidsaredoing.Iwantedtolookintowaysthat

professionalsrecommendedforparentstoguidetheirchildrenonusingsocialmediatohelp

thembesafeandbeawareofthedangers.Inthearticle,HowSocialMediaAffectsTeenagers,

fromtheChildMindInstitute,theRachelEhmkeemphasizeshowshethinksthatparentsshould

beginbysettingagoodexamplefortheirchildren.Thiscanbedonebylimitingtheirown

consumptionofsocialmedia.Anotherstrategythatshesuggestsistocreateatechnologyfree

zoneandtechnologyfreehours.Thisstrategybothhelpskidsspendlesstimeontheinternet

andalsohelpscreatetrustandunderstandingbetweentheparentandchildwhentheycan

communicatewithoutthedistractionsoftechnology.

Personally,Ithoughtthatthisstrategyseemedalotmoreeffectivethanotherswhich

attemptedtorestrictthechildsprivacy.InajournalpublishedintheAmericanJournalofMens

Health,ToTweet,orNottoTweet:GenderDifferencesandPotentialPositiveandNegative

HealthOutcomesofAdolescentsSocialInternetUse,MelissaPujazonZazik(MD,MPH)and

M.JanePark(MPH)emphasizetheneedforparentalmonitoringtohelpprotectchildrenfrom

thedangersofsocialmedia.Theauthorsstatethat,Homecomputersshouldbekeptina

commonarea,suchasthelivingroom,whereactivitiesmaybemonitored.Whilemonitoringa

childsonlineusagemayhelppreventactsofcyberbullyingandkeepthemawayfromdangers

suchasonlinesexpredators,childrenmayfeelasthoughtheirprivacyisbeingbreached.
 Inadditiontoparentshavingaresponsibilitytoguidetheirchildrentousesocialmedia

appropriatelyandsafely,Ifoundajournalthatemphasizedtheroleofpediatricsinguided

childrenonsocialmediaaswell.TheImpactofSocialMediaonChildren,Adolescents,and

Families,publishedontheGatewaydetailsthatpediatricsareinauniquepositiontohelp

childrenandparentsunderstandsocialmediabetter.GwennOKeeffeandKathleenClarke

Pearsonstate,Pediatriciansareinauniquepositiontoeducatefamiliesaboutboththe

complexitiesofthedigitalworldandthechallengingsocialandhealthissuesthatonlineyouth

experiencebyencouragingfamiliestofacethecoreissuesofbullying,popularityandstatus,

depressionandsocialanxiety,risktaking,andsexualdevelopment.

Notjustnegatives

WhilemanyofthesourcesthatIfoundfocusedonthenegativesofsocialmedia,there

weremanyothersthatIfoundthatgavegreatargumentstothepositiveseffectsofsocialmedia

onteens.Fromtheabilitytofreelyexpressthemselvestoothersarguingthatteensactually

benefitedsociallyfromusingsocialmedia,itwasclearthatthestorywasnotonesided.Alarge

benefitofsocialmediausebyteensistheabilitytouseitasaneducationalplatform.Inan

interestingstudyIfound,UnderstandingtheImmobilityofEngagingAtRiskYouth:ThroughArt

andMobileMedia,researchesproposedusingasocialmediaplatform,Instagram,toengage

studentsatriskofdroppingoutinarteducation.Capitalizingonthefactthatsomanychildren

todayspendcountlesshoursontheirsmartdevices,theresearches/instructorshadthestudents

createprivateInstagramaccountstoallowthemtosharetheirpicturestocompleteassignments.
Bybeingmobile,kidscouldtaketheireducationoutsideoftheclassroomandbefreeto

commentontheirpeersworkandgreatlyengagewithoneanother.

Thisstudywasparticularlyinterestingtomebecausetheresearcherslookedatsocial

mediainauniqueway.Typically,Iwouldthinkofsocialmediaassomethingthatdistractsteens

fromtheirschoolwork,buttheresearchesdemonstratedthatitcouldactuallybeusedtofurther

engagestudents.Afterreadingthisjournal,Iwasmoreinterestedinseeingwhatotherpositive

effectssocialmediacouldhaveonteens.

Contrarytowhatmanyresearchershadtosayabouttheeffectsofsocialmediaonteens

intermsofsocialdevelopment,ajournal,ToTweet,orNottoTweet:GenderDifferencesand

PotentialPositiveandNegativeHealthOutcomesofAdolescentsSocialInternetUsebyMelissa

PujazonZazik(MD,MPH)andM.JanePark(MPH),arguesthatsocialmediacanactuallyhelp

ateenssocialdevelopment.Thejournalstates,onlineinteractionprovidesavenuetolearnand

refinetheabilitytoexerciseselfcontrol,torelatewithtoleranceandrespecttoothers

viewpoints,toexpresssentimentsinahealthyandnormativemanner,andtoengageincritical

thinkinganddecisionmaking.Thiswasaninterestingfindformebecauseitseemstodirectly

contradictwhatmyothersourceshadtosayonthematter.Anotherinterestingpointmadebythe

journalwasthatsocialmediacouldbeusedtostrengthenexistingofflinerelationshipswith

friendsandromanticinterests.Myothersourceshavepaintedthepicturethatkidsare

communicationpurelythroughsocialmedia,yetthisjournalsuggeststhatsocialmediacouldbe

usedasasupplementtoarelationshiptomakethemmoremeaningful.Personally,Iknowthisto

betrue.IhavemanyfriendswhohavegoneofftovariouscollegesalloverthestateofNorth

Carolinaandevensomeoutofstate.Ifitwerenotforsocialmedia,ourrelationshipswould
likelyhavefadedaway,yetweareabletokeepintouchandmaintainourfriendships,thanksto

socialmedia.

SoWhat?

Uponendingmyresearch,itwasevidentthattherewasnoclearanswertowhetherthe

effectsofsocialmediaonteensweremorepositiveormorenegative.Ifoundmanyinformative

studiesthatarguedstronglyinonedirectionandothersthatarguedjustaswellintheother

direction.Whatwascleartome,however,wasthatsocialmediashouldbegivenmuchmore

attentiontobyparents,teachers,pediatrics,andotherhumanserviceprofessionalsinachilds

life.Althoughitcannotbedeterminedifsocialmediaisstrictlygoodorbadforkids,ifchildren

arentguidedcorrectlyonhowtoresponsiblyusetheplatforms,thenegativeswillsurely

outweighthepositives.ThevaryingviewpointsthatIcameacrossduringmyresearchwasalso

evidentthatweneedtostudysocialmedianowmorethanever.Everyday,newtechnologiesand

socialtrendsarearisingthatcouldhaveprofoundeffectsonchildhooddevelopment.Without

studyingtheseaspects,childrencouldbeexposedtonewoutletsforbullyingordepressionifnot

handledproperlybyparentalfigures.
 WorksCited

Brooks,Jon."FacebookAndMortality:WhyYourIncessantJoyGivesMeTheBlues."NPR.

NPR,07Sept.2016.Web.27Mar.2017.

Castro,JuanCarlos,MartinLalonde,andDavidPariser."Understandingthe(Im)mobilitiesof

EngagingAtRiskYouth:ThroughArtandMobileMedia."StudiesinArtEducation57.3(n.d.):

n.pag.ProQuest.Web.24Mar.2017.

O'keeffe,G.S.,andK.ClarkePearson."TheImpactofSocialMediaonChildren,Adolescents,

andFamilies."Pediatrics127.4(2011):80004.Web.19Mar.2017.
PujazonZazik,Melissa,andM.JanePark."ToTweet,orNottoTweet:GenderDifferencesand

PotentialPositiveandNegativeHealthOutcomesofAdolescentsSocialInternetUse."

AmericanJournalofMen'sHealth4.1(2010):7785.Web.27Mar.2017.

RachelEhmkeisasenioreditorattheChildMindInstitute."HowUsingSocialMediaAffects

Teenagers."ChildMindInstitute.N.p.,n.d.Web.20Mar.2017.

RevisionStrategy

Torevisemypaper,Ibeganbycarefullygoingthrougheachofmygroupmates

commentsonmypapertoseewhatimmediatechangesIcouldmaketomyessay.Thismadeit

clearthatIneededtoaddpersonaldetailsintomyintroductionaswellasmyearlybody

paragraphs.Uponreadingpositivefeedbackonvarioussectionsofmyessay,Ithenaimedto

improveothersectionsbyaddingmoredetailandinputtohavethembeequalinqualitytothe

sectionsIwaspraisedon.Ithenreadthroughmyessaytomakesureitflowedandmadesensein

termsoftheorganizationofthesections.BecauseIoftenhavedifficultywritingmyconclusions,

Ihadafriendreadoveritforanyinputorsuggestionstoimprove.Finally,Iscannedtheessay

foranygrammaticalerrorstoensurethatitwasreadytobesubmitted.