The Impact Of Social Media On Children

Essay, Pages 6 (1389 words)

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It is already a known fact that most teenageras spend large amouts of time on there gadgets, and on social media. Pew research center, a nonpartisan organization has exclaimed that 91% of teenagers access the internet on a mobile device occasionally. 92% are said to go online and 24% are said to use the internet constantly. The question arises, why do teenagers act the way they do with social media? What satisfaction do these teens achieve by the usage of social media?

Social media has both positive and negative factors such as :

Teenagers can grow as individuals by developing social skills and real world skills such as communication that will benefit them in the future.

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Teenagers can connect with their friends through texting etc.

Teenagers can unleash their creativity in many ways on social media and share their ideas.

They can learn about the world news and widen their hold on the multiple issues in the world’s current affairs outside their current environment.

But the risky side effects are:-

They will spend too much time on social causing a detachment to the real world and might get addicted.

Their personal information could be shared causing immediate danger.

They could be found to be a victim of cyberbullying.

They could be harassed by strangers.

Their self-esteem could be reduced causing them to question themselves.

Teenagers are very concerned about their image on social media. The amount of likes they receive on a particular picture they posted will impact them in huge ways. A study conducted by UCLA, a prestigious university, showed that teenagers reacted to a huge number of likes the same way they would when they win a prize.

The part of their brain that is linked to visual attention gets activated when they see other people's’ approval. The sector of our brains that contribute to reward circuitry is particularly more activated during adolescence. The sight of approval gives them a sense of accomplishment. This approval keeps them hooked to social media, craving the rewards.

“Adolescence is second only to infancy when it comes to growth. Therefore, the impact of social media on a developing teen’s mind and body can be huge,” said Kristin Wilson Director of Clinical Outreach at Newport Academy. The academy has explained how extensive social media usage goes hand in hand with the ever so increasing teenage depression. Teenagers who are isolated and unhappy are more prone to use social media as an escape, according to Nicholas Kardaras a renowned public speaker and the author.

A team of psychologists researching for ‘PubMed’ a research institute had conducted an experiment,to test the power of a like and the effect on a teenager’s brain. The used MRI scans on teenagers while they viewed different photos on the popular social media app ‘Instagram’. The results described teenagers taking liking to photos with more likes; this depicted the influence of virtual peer endorsement, and held for both risky images such as drugs and alcohol and also neutral images. Teenagers witness other posts with a lot of likes and somehow feel the need to receive those likes themselves. The sight of surplus likes activated the reward circuitry in their brain and also the same part of the brain that gets activated when one eats chocolate.

If looking at a huge number of likes makes them content, seeing a low number may cause serious problems in the moulding of their personality and character. They might change their whole charisma and nature to please utter strangers on the internet. They will take any negative comments etc. to heart and go into a state of anxiety and stress. Teenagers who spend and excessive amount of time on social media end up having a lot of negative effects. These children were a lot more distressed then someone who checked their social media moderately and retard the growth of the teenager’s developing brain. Excessive use rewires the teen’s brain to seek out immediate gratification.

The question arises – Why do teenagers seek validation on social media?

Teens go on social media to find escape or connections. Teenagers, especially girls, can carefully choose and nit-pick a specific photo with the perfect lighting and the perfect filter to post on their social media account, for all their friends and peers to judge. They attention received on the post will boost their morale and will leave them wanting more. This seems harmless but there might be more psychologically related deeply rooted problems at hand.

Issue 1

Some teenagers in the vital years of their childhood are left alone with a lot of free time, due to both the parents working all day with no one to monitor the child. This causes many psychological issue with the teenager causing them to lash out etc. Children left alone like this often say they are lonely, and are unable to socialize. These kids are insecure, and often antisocial. But there is another example to go by. Kids left alone in the house usually have access to the internet, and spend too much time using this. Parents have no way of monitoring what these teenagers are doing online and teenagers usually do not communicate with their parents. But what do these teens do to compensate for their loneliness?

Teens are known to seek validation on social media and the vacuum in their lives caused by their parents being too busy etc which furthers their needs online. Family problems also lead to teenage loneliness, which is a very pressing issue in today’s economy. Teenage loneliness leads to depression, which all parents fear for their kids. Teenagers blame their parents for most things and usually think whatever they do is right. Parents struggle with balancing their jobs and children and are put under a lot of stress. The teenagers feel like they are missing out, looking at other teenagers having the time of their lives on social media might make them feel like they are left out. This causes them to use social media, which does not have the difficult means of social interaction to receive attention.

Teenagers who suffer from loneliness must be told they are not alone in this world. Parents should seek help if the child is very troubled and mostly just listen to their child’s troubles. Many people say social media causes loneliness in teenagers, making them feel like they have lesser than others. Maybe a break from extensive social media usage would give good results.

Issue 2

Teenagers who search for acceptance on social media are more likely to succumb to peer pressure in a bigger magnitude than a teen who accepts themselves as they are on social media. They struggle to impress everyone will take over their mind as they obsessively look after their accounts. Its normal human nature to compare ourselves to others and tweak our persona to satisfy others opinions on ourselves. But during teenage years, this feeling is magnified and stress and pressure is induced on the child. The feeling of being accepted by everyone will drive teenagers to madness. This is the time they are supposed to cultivate their identities, and they will be influenced by a million factors.

Peer pressure leads to stress and anxiety. The teen will not realise what’s happening to them but their friends and family will surely notice the changes. Mood swings and depression are consequences of peer pressure. In the crucial period when teenagers are supposed to be developing their character and personality, peer pressure confuses them. The need to please in teenagers who seek validation is amplified, as the way that people see them is of high importance to them. Teenagers should be taught to express themselves in any which way they want. Other people’s opinions should not reflect on theirs. They should be taught to love themselves before thinking of others.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the need for validation on social media does have adverse effects on a teenager. They fall into a mental spiral, with anxiety and stress. The low self-esteem that drives them to seek attention on social media platforms is dangerous, causing them to doubt themselves in various manners. High anxiety causes restlessness, nervousness and distracts teenagers. If this syndrome is ignored catastrophe can ensue. Teenagers who crave such attention should be spoken too, asked why they need it.