Social media is something everyone has access to. The choice to use these social platforms is, however, entirely up to the individual. There are mixed views and opinions about social media, some think it’s extremely beneficial, some think it’s one of the downfalls in society. One of the biggest audience social media has are young teenagers and adolescence. Australian teenagers are spending up to 18 hours per week online and 91% of teens aged 15 to 19 report using social media.[1] These statistics are viewed differently amongst different people/audiences. A survey by Pew Research Centre in 2018 found that YouTube, Instagram and Snapchat have surpassed Facebook as the most popular online platform amongst teens[2]. People are led to believe this has occurred due to the fact that teens attention span is smaller than those of adults and social medias such as Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat give them exactly what they desire: entertainment and information quickly and without hassle. Platforms like Facebook are to be believed as social media that appeals more to adults rather than young teens and adolescence. This may be due to adults having more interest in reading longer posts, watching longer videos etc. All these statistics and facts are contributing aspects to the long, unresolved debate about whether social media is good or bad for teens and adolescents. This article will be listing and discussing the pros and cons about the effects social media has on teenagers.
Starting with the positive attributes that social media has to offer to young teens and adolescents, social media is an excellent source for information about current events and affairs. It provides them with information about the goings on in their neighbourhood, school, state, country and even the entire world. This leads to them being equipped with adequate knowledge that can assist them. It can aid them in making informed decisions based on the information they have learned about current affairs that may affect them. It can give them a wider and more informed view of the world. This also provides a voice for the younger society. The leaders of the future, if you will. Teens can speak out about current events that they either find concerning or agree with. It gives a platform to those who want to contribute to these events and affairs, whether that be involving themselves in an online campaign or simply speaking their mind about a topic they are passionate about.
Social media is also a good source of research. With many famous influencers of all genres owning accounts on social media platforms such as Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat etc. it makes it easy to find information on any topic. Research is an easy task when all the information and details you need is so accessible. Sometimes when you’re using the internet to find information it can be unreliable and hard to tell whether it’s true or false. Social media has the ability to source your desired information with extreme accuracy and with the added bonus of comments, that allow people to voice opinions or observations, you can easily find out if the information is true or false.
People with creative interests and talents need some form of outlet. Social media provides just that, a way to express their creativity and also access publicity for those who desire it. It also works vice versa, with the people being able to access other’s creative products easily it’s an excellent source for inspiration and ideas. “The amount of creativity that floods the web on a daily basis through sites like YouTube, Vimeo, Flickr, WordPress, Myspace, Facebook and other sites never fails to astonish”[3]. This form of creativity on social media has been surfacing since early 2000s and is astounding many. It especially gives young teens and adolescents a platform for their creative work. Whether it be that they are looking to start a future career in their creative industry of their choice or if it’s simply a hobby. The publicity and form of recognition that social media provides is extremely beneficial to these young individuals.
Publicity on social media doesn’t just benefit aspiring teens, businesses and workplaces benefit from the wide audience social media provides as well. It isn’t uncommon for businesses to use social media to advertise job opportunities. With teens from the ages 13 – 19 looking for an income and workplace to provide it, it’s a win-win situation. Businesses receive the staff they require and teens can easily find job opportunities on platforms they spend ample time on. Also with the consistently rising popularity of certain platforms it opens up a lot of opportunities for tech job seekers. Facebook, still the most popular social media network as a whole, claimed to create 4.5 million jobs worldwide in 2014, according to a 2015 Deloitte study—not within its own ranks, but at the countless businesses that use it as a marketing platform[4]. People can’t ignore the fact that opportunities can be found due to social media and it’s growth.
Social media comes with good things, usually it’s the young teens and adolescents that are advertising the benefits since they are the majority of its audience on some platforms. However, as with most things, there is bad as well. Starting with the fact of teenagers being exposed to cyberbullying.
Cyberbullying is the same as typical bullying except it is usually online or using technology instead of face to face. It’s more common because the people who are the bullies feel safer because they’re behind a screen. About half of young people have experienced some form of cyber bullying, and 10 to 20 percent experience it regularly[5]. Social media is one of the main sources for cyberbullying online. With the ability to be anonymous online if desired, it makes it considerably easier for cyberbullies to target their victims.
With access to such easy entertainment via social media, productivity levels amongst teens are significantly low. More than half of teens (54%) say they spend too much time on their cell phones, and 41% say they overdo it on social media. According to Common Sense Media, teens spend an average of nine hours a day online (paywall), compared to about six hours for those aged eight to 12 and 50 minutes for kids between 0 and eight[6]. With so many distractions and teens that admit they have an addiction to social media, getting things done on time like school work and other assignments is close to impossible. School grades can be greatly affected by lack of homework being completed and not fully paying attention in class due to the distraction that social media can provide. The fact that young teens and adolescent’s attention spans are being shortened, partially due to the use of social media, makes it difficult for them to commit to one thing to focus on. For example, a written assignment or math homework. If they become bored they have easy access to entertainment. What started as a “quick 5 minute break from work” can turn into hours spent wasted on social media. It’s that easy to be distracted. This form of multitasking is not as beneficial as we believe. In a survey that probed the multitasking habits of more than 350 college students, UConn researchers found that students who multitasked while doing homework had to study longer, and those who frequently multitasked in class had lower grades on average than their peers who multitasked less often[7]. Our minds can put more effort into something when we put all our focus on that activity.
Another effect that social media seems to have on young teens and adolescents, that parents in particular are concerned about, is the deterioration of social skills or lack of development of social skills. When young people are presented with the option to hide behind a screen they are more likely to take it. This is one of the many examples that show that young teens growing up in this age where technology is moving at such a fast pace are lacking in the social skills that we need to be able to perform simple tasks in life. Things like job interviews, communicating with co-workers, dating, and friendships. These are all things that aren’t as easy to achieve when you’re not in a school environment, you need to possess social skills to be able to make these things possible on your own. Contrary to its name, social media takes away some of the main aspects of socialising. The ability to use body language to fully engage in a conversation, have a large attention span and commitment to a conversation, using correct language and punctuation, all things that can’t be achieved via social media or are considered unnecessary when using social media as a main source of communication. Teenagers, between the ages of 12-17, report using text messages in their daily lives more than any other form of communication, including face-to-face interaction – (Lenhart, 2010). A large part of this generation’s social and emotional development is occurring while on the Internet and cell phones. All the time that children and teenagers spend on the web and more specifically social media sites, takes time away from face-to-face communication and in-person activities – (Giedd, 2012). According to a study, from 1997 to 2003, the amount of kids’ non-screen playtime decreased by 20%, while screen activities (TV, computer, videogames, etc.) increased – (Hofferth, 2010). We rely on our social skills in life, however they are being destroyed at such young ages.
If you believe that social media is a completely safe place, you are sadly mistaken. Social media is the perfect gateway for predators who target young teens and adolescents. Who are the predators? Most are male, 76% are over 26 years old, only 5% of predators pretend to be the same age as their victims[8]. The fact that only 5% of predators pretend to be the same age as their victim online shows that teens may not be taking the appropriate cautions they need or aren’t seeing the real danger in these interactions. If teenagers aren’t questioning the motives of a stranger, most likely over 26 years old, then there is something wrong. With the amount of information that can be accessed about each individual that uses social media or has an account on social media, it’s an easy life for a predator. There has also been found that there is almost a secret language for these child predators, using slang and symbols to communicate without suspicion or being caught. This makes it very difficult for concerned parents to be able to monitor their child’s interactions since the majority of parents don’t understand the code. More than 82% of online sex crimes originate from social networking sites that predators use to gain insight into their victim’s habits and likes[9]. Social media can disclose more information than you would prefer or realise.
Overall, social media is growing every day and with this growth there comes the growth of good and bad things that stem from these different platforms. You can gain a lot from social media, however, the cons for this topic are quite concerning as well. The underlying question is what are you willing to risk for the benefits that social media has to offer? How can you protect yourself online and what can you gain from this growing thing in this modern age? All these things should be considered. Social media has a big influence over the lives of young teens and adolescents. We need to be able to recognise the good and the bad. The debate between whether social media is beneficial or not for teens and adolescents is yet to come to a close.
[1] Trinity Grammar School (6/8/2018). The Pros and Cons of Social Media use for Teens [Internet]. Trinity Grammar School. Accessed from: http://info.trinity.nsw.edu.au/blog/the-pros-and-cons-of-social-media-use-for-teens [Accessed 25/3/2019]
[2] Trinity Grammar School (6/8/2018). The Pros and Cons of Social Media use for Teens [Internet]. Trinity Grammar School. Accessed from: http://info.trinity.nsw.edu.au/blog/the-pros-and-cons-of-social-media-use-for-teens [Accessed 25/3/2019]
[3] O’Neil, M (14/12/2010). Has Social Media Spawned a New ‘Age of Creativity’? [Internet]. Adweek. Accessed from: https://www.adweek.com/digital/social-media-creativity/ [Accessed 26/3/2019]
[4] Gelber, M (n.d). Teens Love Snapchat, and so should Job Seekers [Internet]. Monster. Accessed from: https://www.monster.com/career-advice/article/snapchat-most-popular-social-platform-teens [Accessed 26/3/2019]
[5] Cyberbullying Research Centre (2004-2010). Summary of our cyberbullying research [Internet]. Cyberbullying Research Centre. Accessed from: https://cyberbullying.org/ [Accessed 27/3/2019]
[6] Anderson, J (23/8/2018). Even teens are worried they spend too much time on their phones [Internet] Quartz. Accessed from: https://qz.com/1367506/pew-research-teens-worried-they-spend-too-much-time-on-phones/ [Accessed 27/3/2019]
[7] Poitras, C (23/7/2015). Multitasking Increases Study Time, Lowers Grades [Internet] UConn Today. Accessed from: https://today.uconn.edu/2015/07/multitasking-increases-study-time-lowers-grades/ [Accessed 28/3/2019]
[8] Team Rawhide (30/11/2015). Predators [INFOGRAPHIC] [Internet] Rawhide. Accessed from: https://www.rawhide.org/blog/infographics/social-media-a-gateway-for-child-predators/ [Accessed 29/3/2019]
[9] Smart Social (8/1/2018). How Online Predators Target Victims on Social Media [Internet] Smart Social. Accessed from: https://smartsocial.com/online-predators-social-media/ [Accessed 29/3/2019]