The growth and development of technology has perhaps been lauded as one of the greatest thing to ever happen to mankind over the recent years. Basically, the world we live in is controlled by technology; from the televisions sets in our sitting rooms to the phones on our hands to the vehicles on the roads. The world has been globalized by the same technology by turning it into a global village (Gardner & Davis, 2013). However, not everything that glitters is gold and for that, the same technology that has been praise for its positive impacts on the world has also come along with negative impacts in equal measure more so on the young population living in the U.S. for the purpose of this paper, we are going to critically analyze and examine how technology has affected adolescents socially, behaviorally, psychologically and health wise.
Social Impact
Thanks to technology, there has been a general increase in the level of interconnectivity since most of these technological advances such as mobile phones and computers have provided instant methods of communication ( George & Odgers, 2014). Adolescents in the U.S have been quoted as being avid users of mobile phones with 80% of them owning at least one mobile device. Further statistics reveal that each adolescent sends an average of 60 text messages per day ( George & Odgers, 2014). The result of this level of interconnectivity means that most of these adolescents are able to interact with their peers and have more access to social networks hence strengthening already existing relationships ( George & Odgers, 2014).
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Ironically, the same technological devices that have been termed as increasing interconnectivity and social networking have a negative effect on developing key social and relationship skills when it comes to interacting with new people ( George & Odgers, 2014). An experimental research has revealed that by simply placing a mobile phone in front of two people who do not know each other decreases their closeness and the amount of personal information they share with each other. The same also applies with devices such as computers and TVs. It has been established that adolescents spend an average of 7.5 hours in a day consuming media ( George & Odgers, 2014).
Additionally, most of these devices have turned most of the young people into zombies who believe that they cannot live without relying on at least one of these devices. Social scientists have noted that the average American adolescent will spend at least 70% of his/her time during the day glued to one of these devices making them some sort of an addict ( George & Odgers, 2014). The result of this is that the person becomes disconnected with the outside world. For instance, it was found out that video games are very addicting and most of the young people who have access to video games prefer spending almost all day playing the games as opposed to going outside to interact with their peers hence making them introverts (Gardner & Davis 2013).
Behavioral Impact
A qualitative study conducted on 810 teenagers has found out that technology has an impact on the behavior of teenagers ( Cenameri & Luga, 2015), Most of these technological devices provide a forum through which people can connect to the outside world through the internet. Research powered by technology such as functional magnetic resonance imaging has showed that the brains of young people is special in that it has fast growing synapses but still remains unconnected. As such, this makes most of these young people easy to persuade into doing anything since they are more prone to impulsive behavior even without the impact of souped-up hormones and any genetic or family predispositions. To that end, most of these young people tend to copy what they see their peers over the internet doing so as not to be left out of the trendy world. This might result into them adopting either positive or negative behavioral patterns ( Cenameri & Luga, 2015).
An example of a positive behavioral pattern would be a case whereby an adolescent is inspired to work hard by another person over the internet. High cases of negative behavioral patterns have, however been recorded. In a 2015 policy statement, the American Psychological Association observed that there is a close relationship between the use of violent video games and an increase in aggressive behavior among the young people (Scutti, 2018). A similar sentiment has also been shared by the American Academy of Pediatrics who have noted that violent media has contributed to a large extent in making most teenagers violent and in some instances leading to tragedies such as mass shootings (Scutti, 2018). The same has been witnessed by incidences such as the July 2016 shooting in Munich, Germany that left nine people dead after an eighteen-year-old openly shot in a public place non-discriminatorily. The teenager was reportedly said to have been influenced by violent video games which he was a big fan of (Scutti, 2018).
Psychological Impact
Psychologically, some teenagers have been negatively affected by technology. Technology has been termed as having an addictive nature to most of these adolescents. As such, most of them become deeply drawn into technology to the extent of it having a negative impact on them. For instance, teenager internet pornography addiction has become an issue of concern that has been on the rise for the past few years ( Cenameri & Luga, 2015). A University of New Hampshire study report has revealed that young people become exposed to online pornography from as young as the age of eight. With such an addiction, psychologists have noted that a sex-driven society is being created among the teenagers and as such cases of sexual harassment and sexual assault are on the rise (Gardner & Davis 2013).
Cases of cyber-bullying have also been reported and in most instances, they have had a negative psychological impact on the victims. According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, Bureau of Justice Statistics and Cyber Bullying Research Center, 33% of teenagers in U.S have experienced cyber-bullying ( Cenameri & Luga, 2015). Cyber-bullying has been linked with low self-esteem, family problems, academic problems, school violence, suicidal thoughts among the teens and delinquent or antisocial behavior. A number of cyber-bullying cases have also ended tragically, for instance the 2003 case of Ryan Halligan who apparently committed suicide after being bullied over the internet ( Cenameri & Luga, 2015).
Recently, there was report concerning an online game known as the Blue whale game that was linked with at least 130 deaths in Russia. The game involves a 50-day challenge whereby the player is supposed to engage in activities such watching horror movies and waking up at unusual time during this period and eventually committing suicide on the last day. This game, according to psychologists, works by manipulating the minds of young people which is quite easy considering their vulnerability to the internet. This game is a good example of the psychological impact of technology on adolescents.
Health Impact
It has been reported that approximately 4 out of 5 adolescents who own mobile devices sleep with their phones ij their beds or nearby. Additionally, it has also been reported that most of these young people continue using their devices even after going to bed with some keeping the same devices under their pillows so as to avoid missing important messages at night. All these pose some health risk as has been explained by medical experts. One of these health risks is fatigue; use of mobile phones late into the night increases the odds of being worn out the following ay by two to four-fold occurring as a result of limited sleep at night.
Further medical research has also shown that the light emitted by most of these devices including televisions interferes with sleep. This light usually inhibits the production of melatonin which is the hormone that controls the circadian rhythm. The inhibition of production of melatonin makes it difficult to fall or stay asleep.
Means of Protecting Adolescents from the Negative Impact of Technology
With the average age of children owning a phone being 11 years, parents have been blamed for lack of stringent control over their children with regards to how they use such mobile phones. Parental control is necessary in guiding teenagers on the right usage of these technological devices ( George & Odgers, 2014). This control can be achieved through a number of ways such limiting the period of time that the children spend on their devices and counseling them on the right ways to use such devices.
Stringent measures should be placed on technological firms targeting teenagers as their consumers through their technological products ( In Blair et al., 2015). For instance, content being aired on air for public consumption during watershed hours should be friendly to the young people in terms of its impact and video game programmers should create video games that are violent in nature ( In Blair et al., 2015).
As a measure, emotional and attentional self awareness should be fostered on teenagers. This is helpful in terms of reducing the impulsive behavioral pattern that most of these teenagers adopt as a result of being influenced over the internet ( George & Odgers, 2014). Some of the emotional and self-awareness skills that can be taught include teaching them how to take a meta-moment before making a crucial decision. Technology expert have pointed out that continuous partial attention mimics an ongoing state of crisis which prevents people from feeling overwhelmed, over stimulated, and powerless.
Conclusion
The advancement of technology has generally had a positive impact on the world we live in. however, as it seems the same has not been the same with regards to adolescents in the country with regards to aspects such as behavioral patterns and social developments. To that end, it is agreeable among all relevant stakeholders that there is much that ought to be done so as to regulate how this young population interacts with technology and the impact that it has on them.
References
Cenameri, M., & (Luga), P. T. (2015). The Impact of Technology on Adolescent Behavior. Academic Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies . doi:10.5901/ajis. 2015.v4n2s2p288
George, M. J., & Odgers, C. L. (2014, December). The risks and rewards of being an adolescent in the digital age. Retrieved from: http://www.apa.org/pi/families/resources/newsletter/2014/12/digital-age.aspx
Gardner, H., & Davis, K. (2013). The app generation: How today's youth navigate identity, intimacy, and imagination in a digital world . New Haven: Yale University Press.
In Blair, S. L., Claster, P. N., & Claster, S. M. (2015). Technology and youth: Growing up in a digital world . United Kingdom: Emerald.
Scutti, S. (2018, February 22). Do video games lead to violence? Retrieved from: https://edition.cnn.com/2016/07/25/health/video-games-and-violence/index.html
