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Braden Crook
Anna Dilks
Bryce Pearson
RJ Thompson
Marina Walker

Carol Sieverts

English 2010

March 5, 2017

They Like Me, They Like Me Not

Arriving home after a long day at the office spent almost entirely in front

of the computer, you take off your shoes, make yourself a drink and,

ironically, sit in front of your computer again. It is incredible how many of

us choose to communicate with others through social media channels

like Facebook and Twitter rather than speaking directly with the people we

share our homes with. In fact, when we sit with our laptops and chat with

friends, we feel we are relaxing and escaping from our daily grind into the

digital world. (Margalit)

Said Liraz Margalit a therapist and Ph.D. behind online behavior

As extreme as this account may seem it is the harsh reality that many youth ages

thirteen to twenty-two experience on a day to day basis. With this wide spread epidemic

of social media platforms, and increased accessibility social media has become much
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more than a convenient fun way to communicate, it truly has brought a negative social

experience to youth today.

Researchers for statista.com state that, According to estimates, the number

of worldwide social media users reached 1.96 billion and is expected to grow to some

2.5 billion by 2018. (Statista.com) With this stark contrast in the growing numbers

throughout the years, it leads one to ask the potent question of what draws individuals

to these social networking sites? Found within the depths of this increasing number of

social media users is found the increased accessibility to internet and sites such as

Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other well-known social networking sites. As

technology has progressed; showering the world with a myriad of handheld portable

products such as, Ipads, tablets, and smartphones, the use of these sites has

increased dramatically and has become much more frequent. Much of this negative

hold from social media comes because of the dramatic rise in readily accessible

technology.

Percentage of U.S. With Social Media

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Amanda Lenhart, an online researcher for Pew Research Center proclaimed that,

Aided by the convenience and constant access provided by mobile

devices, especially smartphones, 92% of teens report going online daily

including 24% who say they go online almost constantly, according to a

new study from Pew Research Center. More than half (56%) of teens

defined in this report as those ages 13 to 17 go online several times a

day, and 12% report once-a-day use. Just 6% of teens report going online

weekly, and 2% go online less often. (Lenhart)

Although social media has indeed accomplished its overall goal to bring people

together to interact, over the years it has stepped far beyond the realm of social

interaction, and created a world of numbed, and false communication. As teens hide

behind this mask of mass media interaction, it becomes so much more then

communicating, it becomes a question of if they like me, or they like me not?

There are many contributin factors that furnish why this negative stigma has

develop. Some of these include:

89% of teens use social media.

A typical teen Facebook user has 145 friends and an Instagram user has

an average of 150 followers.

One in three teens say they feel more accepted online than they do in real

life.
The U.S., ages 16 34, have been turned down for a job because of their

social media profile.

(Growingwireless.com)
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Kelsey Sunstrum a freelance writer for Psych Central, and frequent social media user

stated, Social media is not only extremely pervasive, it is an activity in which you are

expected to participate. (Sunstrum). Think about it, how often do we see the

questioning look of others as they discover someone who doesnt have a Facebook, or

who chooses not to participate in Instagram? These activities found on social

networking sites, whether publicly acceptable or not, have quickly become social norm.

Nearly half of teens say that they have posted online something that they later regret.

(Growingwireless.com). The accessibility and free ease of these sites, has quickly

dulled our interactions. Communication in person holds risk. We cannot back pedal

once we have said something to someone an arms reach away. However; hidden

behind the dimmed light of a cell phone that risk seems to slowly fade away.

Social media puts an interesting lens on the creation of the self, and how this

construction affects our mental well-being. The ideal self is the self we aspire to be.

(Sunstrum). This lens like a photoshoot constantly snapping pictures, asking for more,

asking for different, and asking for perfect has; because of the accessibility and

expectations, fabricated a phycological void in the minds of youth.

Although we are often unaware of the effects of social media, it undoubtedly has

shaped the societal view. With its positive intentions of connectivity being true, it is

much easier to glass the hallways of a local high school, and see the tops of heads

buried in cell phones plagued with social media. Amidst the excess use of these

resources, are we losing the ability to communicate as we hide behind the screens that

stare back at us? Are we falling into a constant digital depression? Most importantly are
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we losing ourselves as we create an image for others to approve of? Do they like me, or

do they like me not?

Works Cited

Growingwireless.com. n.d. web. 5 March 2017.

<http://www.growingwireless.com/get-the-facts/quick-facts>.

Lenhart, Amanda. Pew Research Center. 9 April 2015. web. 5 March 2017.

<http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/04/09/teens-social-media-technology-

2015/>.

Margalit, Liraz. physcology Today. 29 August 2014. Web Page. 5 March 2017.

<https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/behind-online-behavior/201408/the-

psychology-behind-social-media-interactions>.
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Statista.com. 2016. web. 5 March 2017.

<https://www.statista.com/statistics/273476/percentage-of-us-population-

with-a-social-network-profile/>.

Sunstrum, Kelsey. Psych Central. 3 March 2014. Web. 5 March 2017.

<https://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2014/03/14/how-social-media-

affects-our-self-perception/>.