The use of social media has increased among adolescents in the past decade. Technological developments have spurred the use of internet and virtual communication through mobile gadgets and computers among young people. The dominance of social media utilization is causing a heightened recognition of the dangers linked with it. Richter, Heilmann, and Moor (2020) confirm that 92 percent of adolescents utilize the internet on a daily basis, with about 71 percent admitting to using at least two different kinds of social media sites. As such, the aspect of social media risk on teenagers is a matter that should be carefully determined.
The Reason for Choosing the Topic
The choice of this topic was steered by the prevalence of social media sites that many teenagers are addicted to. Increased utilization of social media has made parents to be worried about their children. The teenagers spend most of the time on social media and hardly interact with their families and books (Chassiakos et al., 2016). The topic is important because overuse of social media can cause negative impacts on the wellbeing of this young people. Through this study therefore, favorable recommendations can be made to reduce or eliminate completely the negative repercussions of social media.
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Research Questions
The questions relevant to this research include:
How frequent are young people utilizing social media platforms today?
(ii) Are the young people and parents able to realize the negative repercussions of social media platforms?
Brief Literature Review
Social media has been associated with reduced self-esteem, high depression, aggressive behaviors, cyberbullying and many others. According to Chassiakos et al. (2016) social media utilization is linked to psychosocial challenges and can even worsen for a young person who is already susceptible to depression, worry and mental sicknesses. The use of social media is increasingly becoming rampant among teenagers, who may not recognize the repercussions associated with them. Young people may not easily be aware of the influence social media may have on their self-esteem or wellbeing.
Chassiakos and colleagues (2016) opted to understand the relationship between social media and the health of teenagers. The authors endeavored to know the possible effects that social media could have on the wellbeing of teenagers. The outcome of the study indicated that social media greatly impacted the health of self-esteem and well-being of young people. Social media use was also related to low body image, as well as cyberbullying and depression of some sites such as Facebook. Signs and symptoms of depression was also linked to extended utilization of social media platforms like Facebook. On the contrast, Chassiakos et al. (2016) established that there is a positive impact in terms of self-esteem with social media use.
Richter, Heilmann, and Moor (2020) conducted a survey on a number of high school students regarding social media platforms. The authors determined to find the link between the social media platforms utilization and self-esteem, depression and opinions about oneself. They determined that possessing a social networking profile led to an increased social self-perception. Nonetheless, the study established that reduced self-esteem and increased depression was linked to being so much frequent on social media sites. Besides social media use being correlated with increased levels of anxiety and depressed mood, the teenagers also experience poor self-quality. Richter, Heilmann, and Moor (2020) indicated that, “much focus should be placed on determining how adolescents are highly exposed to the negative effects of social media since the current generation of young people spend more time using social media than any other age group.” As such, the responsible practitioners should quickly find strategies that can be helpful to help them avoid or deal with those risks.
In conclusion, the use of social media can negatively impact a lot of teenagers. It is significant that healthcare practitioners, parents, instructions and other institutions recognize these effects and take recommendable measures to eliminate depression, reduced self-esteem and instances of cyberbullying among users. When the precautions are regarded, there is a better position of dealing with the negative impacts of social media among the teenagers.
References
Chassiakos, Y. L. R., Radesky, J., Christakis, D., Moreno, M. A., & Cross, C. (2016). Children and adolescents and digital media. Pediatrics , 138 (5), e20162593.
Richter, M., Heilmann, K., & Moor, I. (2020). The good, the bad and the ugly: the relationship between social media use, subjective health and risk behavior among children and adolescents. Gesundheitswesen .
Survey Questions
How frequent do you (teenagers) have discussions about social media with your parents?
Why do you think teenagers are addicted to social media use?
Are there negative consequences of social media sites that you are aware of?
Can parents and practitioners help to completely mitigate the risks of social media use?
