Social media is a vastly adopted technology in modern society. Teenagers are the major users of this technology, making it part of their daily routine and life. Notably, most of these young people regard social media as an essential entity in their life (Nesi 118). This form of embracement, however, has some associated benefits to them, such as empowering their social life, enhancing their communication skills, and allowing them access to friendly platforms for sharing ideas and knowledge. It is worth noting that some parents and professionals, especially education stakeholders, have applauded teenagers’ use of social media for connection as being healthy. Even though it is projected to be part of teenagers’ lives, it presents shortcomings just like any other technology that has limitations and negative influences. In depth social media analysis hints at several desirable and undesirable impacts on young people, and it also reveals some mitigation measures worth adopting.
Currently, there are several social media platforms, and the leading ones regarding usage popularity by teenagers include Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, and Snapchat. Statistically, in the year 2018, 85% of teenagers used YouTube to communicate, 72% used Snapchat, 51% utilized Facebook, and 69% used Snapchat (Nesi 117). The same data source indicated these young people between 16 and 24 years of age consumed three hours a day on social media platforms. I realize that I belong to this group and because of that awareness, I need to check my health risks as I continue to use this technology. The frequency of teenagers’ social media use varies, and in some way, the overuse is linked to mentally ill individuals encountering internalizing problems.
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Teenagers are the major users of social media; they obtain significant benefits, such as emotional wellbeing based on controlled anxiousness and stress. Moreover, they are able to obtain joy because there are several fun items that people share on these platforms. These spaces also offer teenagers prowess in communication skills, as they are able to express their feelings directly to their friends through social media (Akram and Rekesh 348). Personally, I have expressed my problems in a specific Facebook group, and I have managed to obtain solutions worth adoption. Therefore, apart from being a fun place to connect with friends, social media can be used for obtaining reliefs and solutions to problems we have. It connects people beyond geographical barriers, making the world look like a global village.
Teenagers largely depend on their friends for individual analysis, such as the measure of their esteem. Most teens prefer to obtain a mirror of themselves from other people’s perspectives. Because of this need, it is common to find that most teens would post charming images of themselves, wearing trendy clothes in order to obtain other’s appreciation. In brief, this feeling prompts teenagers to like the tendency of connecting with more friends and expand their interaction horizon (Nesi 120). In my view, social media has enabled globalization, hence enabling young people to connect and be friends globally. It is because social media has a significant independence level, fostering teenagers to freely socialize.
Social media has also enhanced learning and sharing knowledge. By surfing through social media platforms, it is possible to obtain significant data about a particular research question, enabling one to accomplish study objectives (Akram and Rekesh 353). Moreover, the knowledge gained from these platforms can help a teenager to operate in a specific way in their daily lives; that is, there are experiences worth noticing and they can change one’s life. From my experience, I have read social media stories regarding drug use, and I noticed that all of them end in a bad state. This lesson helped me develop an awareness of drugs.
In my view, the benefits of social media seem to outweigh limitations. However, limitations are extreme, as they undesirably dent a person’s emotional well-being. Specifically, social media undesirably affects teenagers who are susceptible to mental illness. Young adults aged between 18 to 25 are also highly susceptible to mental illness (Ine et al. 57). As such, I believe social media adversely affects a large teenage population who are encountering mental illness or those susceptible to mental illness. This group of young people spends at least three hours a day surfing and it is associated with internalizing problems. Some extensive detriments of this behavior entail disrupted sleeping patterns, meaning they can suffer from sleep deprivation-related illnesses. In addition, these teen
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