Impact of Social Media on Adolescent Well-being

The Evolution of Communication and Social Media

Along with the progress of human technology, our way of life is also evolving. Former people need to write letters to get in touch with each other by spending a long time. Now, social media has appeared in our life. People can quickly keep in touch with friends from the other side, no matter wherever they are. What is Social Media? Social Media can be websites or applications (Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter) as apps on smartphones that can let people share their content (events, opinions, videos, or photos) in real-time with other people.

The Benefits and Drawbacks of Media Consumption

From the past to the present, we can clearly realize that Social Media has brought us much convenience, but there are many youths who cannot control themselves, and it has caused many serious negative effects on them. One of the impacts is that teens become addicted to Social Media and can’t live without it.

The Addiction to Social Media

Whiteman said it was found that 63% of Americans are browsing on Facebook websites every day, and they usually use it not only one time. There are a variety of reasons that people use Social Media. From examining the findings, some people prefer to look at their friend’s or acquaintances’ pages to see what they are doing, while others may just want to post something on Facebook when they are upset. However, according to experts’ analysis could be concluded that the most important reason for using Social Media is that they can do something to go through the time when they are bored. Some people say that Social Media won’t let people become addicted and dependent. Social media can give people more convenience in having a conversation with others. They say that social networking is so easy to contact friends that we don’t have to go outside to have dating, and we just stay at home using devices to contact.

However, people who use Social Media have become dependent on their phones. In the present, you can see many people using their phones everywhere and at every moment. For example, people who have dinner in a restaurant with their friends and you can see they use their phones and talk with their friends in the virtual world instead of having a pleasant conversation with friends who are around them. Many people nowadays spend so much time on their phones using Social Media that they have forgotten how much time they waste on their phones instead of having other meaningful things to do. Social Media is very addictive. Most of the people I know are checking and communicating on social networking sites all day. They don’t know how much time they waste on Social Media. In other words, most people use Social Media to communicate with others every day, and it gradually becomes addictive. Most of them even didn’t know how much time they spend on Social Media per day.

Impact on Social Communication

Another influence on teens using Social Media is Social communication. In other words, Nicholas Dantuono asserts using Social Media may have an influence on communication; talking to other people is necessary and very important in our life which is unavoidable. Wherever we go, we meet people, and we have to talk to people. Social skills are from childhood when you communicate with others through gradual progress. The teen period is the most important time. They are supposed to learn things at their age, but they are affected by Social Media in current. If we don’t pay attention to this situation seriously, their social skills will not be as good as adults nowadays. However, there are also positive effects: What Nicholas Dantuono really means is that using Social Media also has some positive ways. Teenagers are also at a stressful age because of their studies, family, or uncertainty about the future. The use of social media and the ability to keep in touch with friends may have a positive impact on relationships among contemporaries. Since they are under pressure, chatting with friends can become a way to relieve their stress and can have a positive relationship with friends.

Through connectivity and making use of social media, teens can maintain strong relationships with their friends who have the same age and help them to face stress. If social media is used correctly, just like maintaining relationships, teenagers’ social skills must not be reduced so much. In addition, teens spend more time online instead of interacting with people in real life. Everyone can look at their smartphones any time using Social Media. Since Social Media is becoming more common, it is more convenient to get in touch with friends online than face to face, so people gradually prefer to communicate online. In a study that surveyed 280 high school students, most of them use Social Media, and the majority said that they are more comfortable keeping in touch on Social Media than face to-face. Some people say that using Social Media won’t affect people’s social skills. Using Social Media can reduce the time and distance to communicate with each other. For example, a member of the family is on a business trip, and you want to contact him/her. You won’t write a letter or go to the place where he/she is, but you can use Social Media to contact him/her.

The Dangers of Cyber Bullying

Another problem is cyber bullying which people overlook the harm of words on Social Media. Although these words are not spoken face to face in real life, they also are harmful doing on online. Cyberbullying happens often on social media such as Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter because people can write anything about it. What is cyberbullying? Cyberbullying refers to people who bully or harass another person on the internet. It can be done in many ways, such as spreading rumors about someone, spending mean information or threats to a person’s email or cellphone, or sending a damaging message by burglarizing someone’s account. Cyberbullying Research Center has done the research and shows cyberbullying statistics: There are about half of the teens who use Social Media have experienced the situation of cyberbullying. Cyberbullying has been divided into several familiar ways, such as demagoguery and hurtful and aggressive comments. Boys are being cyberbullied easier than girls, and victims of cyberbullying would consider suicide. It is evident from the data that most people who use smartphones have met cyberbullying, and some of them often happen to them.

There are many forms of cyberbullying, and there are some most common types. For instance, a hurtful comment, spreading rumors, or being mean to other people on the internet by using Social Media. Dave Harte states when they are face to face, there are some words that they dare to say, but people can have a conversation or write whatever they want on Social Media; they are not worried about getting in trouble with somebody and don’t have to take any responsibility for what they said. In addition, if you think it only happened to girls, you are wrong. From previous research, boys have met the situation more often than girls. Since they have often suffered in such bad situations, it might make them feel depressed, and they are going to commit suicide (Dave Harte). However, there is also some upside for teens that use Social Media. According to Katie Hurley, for teenagers who are not easily getting along with peers face to face or have difficulty with social skills, it might be a good method to let them communicate on Social Media and find support instead of being isolated (Katie Hurley). Next, using Social Media can damage people’s mental health.

The most serious problem is that social media has caused a lack of sleep in teens. From examining the findings, teenagers spend at least 1 hour on Social Media such as Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter. These teenagers had more sleep problems compared to those who had restricted use of Social Media. In other words, Robyn Treyvaud asserts teenagers need more sleep than adults, but they don’t. In the present, teens are used to scrolling their phones in bed before they prepare for sleep. Browsing Social Media information may let their mind keep awake. Teenagers need to sleep 8-10 hours per day, but they didn’t reach this standard. If you don’t sleep sufficiently, it might cause unhealthy. For example, if you are not concentrating the next day and you cannot study well in school, you will have acne on your face because of lack of sleep or become irritable, stressed, or anxious.

The other issue is comparing with others which may cause depression in teenagers. Katie Hurley said people who use Social Media like Facebook will become depressed because people will compare themselves with others, and they will have negative feelings such as being discouraged, embarrassed, or depressed. Facebook depression is a new term that refers to depression that develops because children and teens spend a lot of time on social media sites and begin to experience depression as a result. When teens compare themselves to photos of others and the illusion of others’ better lives, they can experience decreased self-esteem and depression.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the progress of science and technology in many fields has made peoples’ life more advanced and convenient. The progress of science and technology has a direct and positive impact on people’s way of life. On the other hand, it also indirectly and negatively affects people’s health. Although what is happening is not changing, we can find a more active and correct way to use Social Media to make young people live in a healthy environment.

References:

1. Nicholas Dantuono (2015). “How Social Media is Effecting Social and Communication Skills Among Adolescents.” Retrieved April 27, 2018. From https://slwrig02.expressions.syr.edu/spring2015wrt205/2015/03/28/how-social-media-is-effecting-social-and-communication-skills-among-adolescents/
2. Honor Whiteman (2015). “Social Media: How Does it Affect Our Mental Health and Well-being?” Retrieved April 27, 2018. From https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/275361.php
3. “Social Media Bullying Has Become a Serious Problem.” Retrieved April 27, 2018. From https://nobullying.com/social-media-bullying-has-become-a-serious-problem/
4. “Cyber Bullying Statistics.” Retrieved April 27, 2018. From http://www.bullyingstatistics.org/content/cyber-bullying-statistics.html
5. Robyn Treyvaud: “The Negative Effects Of Social Media On Teens.” Retrieved April 27, 2018. From https://wanglefamilyinsites.com/advice/negative-effects-of-social-media-on-teens/
6. Katie Hurley: “Social Media and Teens: How Does Social Media Affect Teenagers’ Mental Health.” Retrieved April 27, 2018. From https://www.psycom.net/social-media-teen-mental-health