Jean Twenge article “Has the Smartphone Destroyed a Generation,” was related to her research on generation x and how adaptable children can become. In it, Twenge argues that smartphone addiction in the younger generation can lead to mental health issues, and should be pressed for attention regarding parental supervision. Twenge a psychology professor who has been studying generational differences for 25 years and believes there are changes in generation behaviors. Begins with a number of personal stories about growing up as a member of generation x and baby boomers and how she came to studying and surveying young minds. Explaining how increasing studies show that for many teenagers, the amount of social media intake can lead to isolation.
Turkle begins her paper with the shocking statement, “Roman, eighteen, admits that he texts while driving and he is not going to stop” (236). Not only does she use this as a captivating hook, she uses it to introduce the appalling dependency young people when it comes to technology. Even though everyone knows secretly how much they cling to their phones, Turkle talks about it freely. She opens the curtains and shines a light on the atrocious overuse of phones and social media. Through various interviews, the reader learns of how extreme social media affects day-to-day life, “‘Sometimes you don’t have time for your friends except if they’re online’” (237).
In Melissa Healy’s article, “Teenage Social Media Butterflies May Not Be Such a Bad Idea” Healy argues that kids who is submerged in their social media may not be such a bad thing. Melissa supports this argument by explaining the new study that states 13 and 14 year olds use the same style of conversation that they have with online friendships and offline friendships. She also explains how the associate director of the Children’s Digital Media Center in Los Angeles, Subrahmanyam finds out children and young adults constructively use the internet for work.
Both articles implicate evidence that teenagers are being harmed due to the daily overuse of technology. Having the ability to scroll through social media all day, to scroll through the internet, and so many other countless things that can be done with technology is destroying not just teenagers but all humans, no matter what age, when it comes to their thought processes and emotions. The negatives of our smartphone-mediated culture drastically outweigh the positives, primarily due to the harm that technology is creating for teenagers and for every human who is using technology daily. The way our mind thinks, processes and overall functions dictate what type of life path someone takes. However, these paths are being altered due to the drastic increase in technology use among teenagers and, generally, humans.
English Editorial In the article “Is social media ruining our kids?” Potarazu states that social media is making kids become depressed and unplugged from reality. Now that kids have smartphones and tablets, they can hang out in the “dangerous corner” without even leaving their room. Pew Research Center found that 92% of teens go online a day, and 24% say they’re online “constantly”.
Katie Hurley, the author of the article “Social Media and Teens:”, provides information on the widespread debate of whether or not social media helps or hurts teenagers. Assuming the audience is parents that have a teenage girl or boy, Hurley writes this article by giving information, but also advice for parents too. The audience would most likely benefit if they are parents of teenagers. Hurley states that the impact social media has on teens’ mental health is still unknown due to media constantly changing, and the lack of long-term studies. The contents of the article include mentions of multiple studies and results from different universities.
It creates new technology to confront new sets of problems.” This quote not only resonates with the book but it also resonates with me because it talks about modern day society. Technology is currently advancing and there can be very crucial and important parts from it, but there are also harmful aspects of it. For example, social media. Social media is a new advancement in society which is harming many teenagers these days with mental health problems, eyesight problems, as well as anxiety.
As Tom Dalzell states that slang is important for teenagers to express their identity and to resist from parent’s control. Slang is used mainly to get away from all the seriousness people face day-to-day. Teenagers in the 21st century are particularly fond of slang because it allows them to express themselves however they want. Slang in music and language, however, it is harder to eliminate as Dalzell states, but the only reason slang is hard to erase because it is deeply rooted in American English. No matter where you go in America, slang will be in use in today’s millennial.
Conforming to Dr. Donna Wick, “kids text all sorts of things that would never in a million years contemplate saying to anyone’s face”(7). Teens are always looking to fit in and be happy, but they don’t seek out opportunities to interact with one another because they are so worried and caught up with social media and trying to fit in. Dr. Wick also confirms the emotional effect that social media has, “kids are often left imagining the worst about themselves” (17). If teenagers today are put in a situation where they are asked to express themselves or what their opinion is over a topic, they feel uncomfortable and awkward because they have grown accustomed to only expressing those types of emotions through a screen and not in person. Causing them to miss out on the real world, they “are learning to do most of their communication while looking at a screen, not another person” (2).
Social media traps kids in the cyber world with socializing sites such as Facebook or Instagram, persuading kids to spend more time online than offline. The more time the kids occupy socializing through the internet than in person, the more unproductive they are in life. Research from the Pew Research Center in the article “Antisocial Networking” indicated that , “… half of American teenagers – defined in the study as ages 12 through 17 – send 50 or more text messages a day and that one third send more than 100 a day.” Although this statistic seems to demonstrate teens being productive online, the persistent usage of social media is making kids over-obsessed with social media. The obsession of social media is manipulating kids into believing that it is a necessity to devote more time socializing through technology, thus reducing their general health.
In this modern age, social media is highly involved in our lives, and in many good ways. Social Media is used for communication, entertainment, and growth among human interaction. In the article “The Upside of Selfies: Social Media Isn’t All Bad for Kids” authored by Kelly Wallace talks of the many positives that social media can have. However, Suren Ramasubbu in "Influence of Social Media on Teenagers" argues that social media has many terrible effects on children. Though critics focus on the negative, social media can provide many beneficial effects on children.
In conclusion, the authors agree that there are negative impacts of digital media on the lives of adolescents. However, they seek to appeal to the readers, parents and teachers to help the teenagers use digital media for exploration and establishment of sustainable relationships with family and friends. Regarding the acquisition of negative behaviors and identity, the authors encourage parents to remain watchful of the platforms that their children subscribe to and guide them on the best ways to acquire positive behaviors. Teachers can encourage the students to use the apps for inventions and exploration of new solutions to problems. With trust and self-disclosure, the adolescents can use digital media to develop deeper relationships that anchor on the values and cultures of the society (Howard & Katie, 2013).
More and more people are changing their way of dating especially adolescent girls. Social media, dating applications, and pornography are the major contribution to the changes. Thanks to those outlets, expectations from these girls are higher than ever. Girls’ digital lives are affecting their in person social lives more ways than ever.
While Teenagers feel that social media is more important than the real world its alot of negative effects of social media. One is that it can take over brain cells and effect mental and physical health. Being On social media every day, every hour, and every minute can really cause damage to your brain cells. Our brain grows as when learn new things and when we learn the new things it changes after we done experienced it. It Changes the way we think and feel.
Online social media is a term used to describe the interaction and activities between individuals or groups of people, exchanging different ideas over the internet. Social media has a huge and significant impact on young people as they are gaining popularity all over the world. Children grow up in an environment surrounded by smart mobile devices, computers and interactive social networking applications such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Social media became a vital aspect in not only teenagers but also the life of adults.
