By Blake Birenkrant
It’s no secret that social media has become a very important part of many people’s lives. Today, there are so many different technological devices to use, such as cell phones, laptops, tablets, watches, and more. Access to different social media platforms is right at our fingertips. Social media has many benefits in today’s society. People use it for daily news, to share moments in their lives, to see what other people close to them are up to, to send messages to different people and groups, and to view or create content for different interests. No matter what way you use it, social media has a variety of different communities that you can fit into.
Unfortunately, social media does have many downsides. The different platforms available for use can have both physical and mental downsides to using them, no matter how you use them. Furthermore, teenagers can experience these social media downsides just as much as adults and many times even more. A lot of social media sites set age restrictions to create accounts on their platform for safety and security reasons. However, many teenagers or other youth ignore these warnings and create accounts anyway. This is what leads to many teenagers experiencing very negative physical and mental effects that are the result of social media. It’s important to understand the exact effect social media has on the current youth generation in order to set different boundaries and create methods that allow social media to be used in the most positive and efficient way possible.
Types of Social Media
There are a variety of types of social media that everyone has access to today. While the exact purpose of each social media differs, the universal goal of all of these platforms is to connect people digitally from all across the world. Much of the social media created, however, was originally designed for adults, but of course the audiences of it have expanded to teenagers, which has mixed effects.
Social Networking Platforms
Some of the first types of social media platforms created fall under the category of social networking. These platforms allow people to connect digitally, specifically by networking through various online chat or comment features. Some of the current social networking social media sites include Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), and Snapchat. All of these sites specialize in allowing people to communicate with each other through private or group chats, public posts, and comment threads. These platforms are great at creating and developing relationships and groups with online networking and messaging, but of course they have all their downsides.
Video Sharing Platforms
A more recent type of social media to be created are platforms related to sharing online videos with users. Two specific companies that have had rapid growth and success include YouTube and TikTok (formerly Musical.ly). These sites allow people to create various online video content, such as vlogs, dances, skits, competitions, etc. These platforms are great for allowing people to express themselves in whatever way possible and also find a community of people interested in the same things (a process made simple by the various algorithms used). Additionally, these sites are some of the best ways that creators can make income off their followers and subscribers that they receive from fans of their online content.
Photo-Based Platforms
While it’s true that many of the current social media platforms today allow users to create and post photos, some current social media sites specialize in creators posting a variety of photos. Some of the more popular platforms include Instagram, VSCO, and BeReal. All of these sites allow users to post any type of photo, whether it’s of themselves or something they are passionate about. In addition, these platforms allow users to search for certain content, follow favorite creators and influencers, and comment on the various posts made.
Social Media Benefits for Teenagers
Social media can sometimes get an overly bad reputation, especially when it comes to teenagers using it. However, it’s important to recognize the various benefits that social media can bring to all users, especially teenagers.
Social Connection
One of the most common realized benefits of social media is the social connection that it provides. Being that all social media is completely digital, the different platforms allow people to communicate whether they live in the same town or on completely opposite sides of the country or world. Teenagers can communicate with friends and family with ease on both private chats and group chats for practically any purpose. Additionally, social media allows teens to connect with other teens that they have never met before but possibly share similar interests and hobbies.
Self-Expression and Supportive Communities
The great thing about almost all social media is that users can practically post whatever they want to, within bounds of the platform’s terms and conditions. This concept creates an avenue for many teenagers to express themselves in whatever way they want, whether through photos, videos, etc. Teenagers can express themselves about their identity, interests and hobbies, and overall opinions and current events. Additionally, teens can find different communities through social media that provide full support for whatever they do and can spark ideas and creativity through shared interests.
Entertainment
One last major benefit that social media can provide is long-lasting entertainment. This entertainment can include watching favorite creators on different platforms or keeping up with different people’s lives. Whatever the case may be, social media allows teenagers to both connect with others and be entertained by whatever content they find interesting, such as sports, arts, comedy, and more. With the vast amount of content and creators available to view on social media, there is something interesting and entertaining for everyone.
Social Media Harms for Teenagers
Social media obviously has a number of positive effects for users, even for teenagers who meet the application’s age minimums. However, social media also has a number of drawbacks that result in negative impacts on users. These impacts can be even worse for teenagers, especially if a teen is under the specific social media’s age requirement.
Anxiety and Depression
For teenagers who use social media, they are at risk of experiencing severe anxiety or possibly depression for a number of reasons. Firstly, the constant exposure to the curated and fake content on social media may lead teenage users to compare themselves and possibly feel not worthy as well as have a distorted self-image. Secondly, all users of social media, but particularly teenagers, are at risk of getting cyberbullied, which can include facing harassment, exclusion, or threats online. Lastly, social media can cause teenagers to become addicted to the platforms, resulting in negative habits developing as users become reliant on the applications.
Reduced Attention Span
One of the more alarming effects of social media for teenagers is a reduction in attention span. Teenagers experience mental development as their brains continue to grow, and the constant exposure to social media can prevent certain developments from taking place. The ease with which teenagers can access social media content can result in overall attention spans reducing in areas of education, labor-related tasks, and more.
Risky Behavior
The large exposure to content on social media may prompt teenagers to engage in risky behavior. This is primarily due to different trends going viral, as well as the viewing of different dangerous dares and challenges. Social media can have a peer-pressure effect on users, and this effect is even more likely to affect teenagers on social media.
Privacy and Safety Concerns
Not only can social media have large negative implications for teenagers, but it can also lead to compromises in privacy and safety, especially since teenagers may be below a platform’s age requirement and may not understand certain risks. For example, teenagers may overshare information that is personal, such as phone numbers, addresses, school, and more. All of this information can be used by hackers to gain access to bank accounts, social security numbers, etc. Oversharing may also lead to teenagers leaving a bad digital footprint that is permanently left on the Internet for everyone to view. This can lead to the content resurfacing at some point, which can affect college admission and job placement. Lastly, teenagers on social media may be at risk of getting involved with online predators or catfishers who may pretend to be someone they are not, which can lead to a plethora of harmful outcomes for teenagers.
Best Ways for Teenagers to Positively Use Social Media
Social media can be great for teenagers, but it can also have plenty of negative effects. Luckily, there are many ways for teenagers to use social media in a positive way. This can help avoid all of the negative consequences of social media and enjoy the benefits that users gain from the platforms.
Follow Age Restrictions
One of the best ways to get off on the right foot for using social media is to follow the specific platform’s age requirement to use the platform. While technically these restrictions are “optional,” the requirements are created with the intent to keep all users safe when using their platforms. Following each social media’s age requirement (many are 13+) ensures a positive start to using social media positively for teenagers.
Protect Your Privacy
One of the most important things that teenagers can do to stay safe on social media is take measures to protect their privacy. This primarily involves making your social media account private, meaning anyone who tries to follow you or message you would have to be approved by you first, which helps ensure a stranger won’t cause any danger. Privacy can also be protected by posting content within limits and being wary of responding to messages or following people you are unfamiliar with.
Limit Screen Time
It is clear that social media can become addictive for everyone, but teenagers are the group of people who are most at risk. That is why it is so important for teenagers to limit their time on social media. This can help with both not becoming addicted to the platforms and also avoiding any severe anxiety or attention span reduction that comes from overuse of social media.
Parent-set Boundaries and Restrictions
At the end of the day, the best way for teenagers to use social media in the most positive way is for their parents to set appropriate boundaries and restrictions for using the platforms. Not only does this include privacy measures and screen time limits, but it can also include boundaries on content viewed (certain content can be filtered out), influencers and users followed, and specific social media apps used, as some apps are more dangerous and mature than others. By parents setting appropriate limits for their teenage kids using social media, and by teenagers following them, it ensures that only positive effects of social media are being gained and negative ones avoided.
Social media is a great thing for everyone to use in today’s modern society filled with technology. The benefits of connecting with others, expressing yourself, and finding a community that interests you are all great parts of social media that everyone can enjoy, including teenagers. However, it is crucial to recognize all of the harms and dangers that are associated with social media. These negative effects of using various platforms can unfortunately happen to anyone, but teenagers are a group of people that are at a very high risk of being harmed by social media. That is why it is important to learn about some of these dangers, such as anxiety, peer pressure, and safety concerns. Fortunately, all of these downsides to social media can be mitigated or even avoided completely for teenagers if they are first recognized and then planned around. By following age restrictions, limiting screen time, and having parent-set boundaries for social media, it ensures that teenage users are experiencing only benefits from the applications and avoid the harms. Overall, social media can be a great tool and platform for teenagers to use as long as proactive measures are taken by both parents and teens to ensure a positive experience on social media.