Impact of Social Media on Youth

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In many ways the influx of social media and the internet has had a very positive effect on the youth in today’s society. It allows youth to keep connections between friends when they’re not always able to see each other when they want to.

Social media also keeps you up to date with things that are going on around the world rather than just in your area. At the tip of their fingers, they have access to entire encyclopedias and world news.

Youth have a place to express themselves. It helps to develop social skills; a lot of friendships can stem from a social website. Social media provides a fun way to interact with your peers, other than seeing them in person.

Statistics released by the Pew Internet Research Center with YouTube, Instagram and Snapchat are the most popular online platforms among teens. A full 95% of teens have access to a smartphone, and 45% say they are online 'almost constantly'. Smartphone ownership is nearly universal among teens of different genders, races and ethnicities and socioeconomic backgrounds. The main difference is that lower socioeconomic teens are less likely to have access to a home computer by a difference of 73% for lower income households to 96% if upper income households. 

The most popular social media for teens in 2020 and 2023 were:

2020 Rankings

•  Snapchat
•  TikTok
•  Instagram
•  Twitter 
•  Discord
•  Facebook
•  You Tube/Other
•  Reddit

2023 Rankings

•  You Tube
•  TikTok 
•  Instagram
•  Snapchat
•  Facebook
•  Twitter
•  Twitch
•  WhatsApp
•  Reddit
•  Tumbler

We can see how quickly the preferred sites change and where we can switch our focus to get the most applicable information.

In a previous study (2018) 45% of teens indicated that social media was neither a positive nor negative influence on their life. Also, in this survey 31% indicated that social media had a positive impact on their life. Their reasons cited connecting with family and friends, ease of finding news, inline meeting with other having similar interests, entertainment, the ability to self-express and get support from others, and learning new things.

Teens also reported a downside of social media. Most often cited was bullying and rumor spreading. Seventeen percent noted that social media harms relationships and lacks personal contact along with unrealistic view of other people’s lives. Some teens (14%) claim social media was a distraction or addiction which had a negative effect on their life, followed by problems with peer pressure. 

Social media has greatly affected the way today’s youth spend their leisure time. With the rise in social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, more and more people are logging in everyday just to interact and share information with friends and followers. Moreover, social media has also changed the way people socialize and interact with each other. Lack of face-to-face contact is inhibited by virtual conversations. People are less likely to bully or condemn when facing each other, however, conversations in a virtual community can be harsh and hurtful. Comments can be from persons unknown but subscribe to the same social media. Unfortunately, youth who spend a lot of time on social media are at higher risk for depression, low self-esteem, and eating disorders and more prone to feeling isolated and disconnected according to a Penn State Study.

Other considerations that may be present are:

•  The social websites become their first priority, rather than the things that should come first such as school, family and sports.
•  People portray themselves as someone they’re not.
•  Young people can begin to cyberbully another peer; this can lead to many things such as depression and suicidal thoughts.
•  Some youths are easily influenced so they may feel the need to change their physical appearance by comparing themselves to the next person they see in the media.
•  Social media challenges have become part of the video culture where people video themselves taking part in unusual and often unsafe actions to make a video show. Such trends are further discussed in Module 14.
•  Social media is a very powerful temptation, so it can also become addictive and begin to start sidetracking the youth.

Smartphone Addiction

Smartphone addiction can result in sleep deprivation, increased stress levels, depression and anxiety. Given the following statistics, smart phone usage can be a serious detractor from education. Consider the following statistics from slicktext.com.

•  66% of the population show signs of nomophobia (the fear of being without your phone)
•  The average smartphone user will click, tap or swipe their phone 2,617 times per day.
•  26% of car accidents are caused by call phone use while driving.
•  86% will check their devices while in conversations with friends and family.
•  Constant interruptions can contribute to attention deficit disorder.
•  Compared to teens that use their phone for 1 hour per day, those that use their phone 5+ hours/day are 71% more likely to exhibit suicide risk factors.
•  47% of parents believe their child has a smartphone addiction.
•  67% of teachers surveyed noticed their students being negatively distracted by mobile devices.
•  18–29-year-olds admitted to checking their phones every few minutes.
•  36% of millennials say they spend 2+ hours while at work for non-work-related communications and entertainment.
•  41% of teens feel overwhelmed by the number of text alerts they receive.
•  52% of teens site for long periods of time in silence, on their phones while hanging out with friends.

Did you know that more people have smartphones than they do toilets worldwide?

Texting and Short Messenger Service (SMS) for sending video or image messages are very popular among youth but are technically not social media as texts and SMSs are normally sent from phone-to-phone verses an internet-based platform. MMS stands for Multimedia Messaging Service. It was built using the same technology as SMS to allow SMS users to send multimedia content. It’s most popularly used to send pictures, but can also be used to send audio, phone contacts, and video files.

One in three teens admitted texting or reading texts or messages while driving of those aged 16 and 17. Over half of teens admitted to using a handheld device while driving to talk, which may or may not be legal in some states. In Pennsylvania cell phones may be used either handheld or hands free, but one can still be pulled over for texting while driving.

According to a Washington Post article in 2018 of boys and girls between the ages of 11 and 18 found that 18.5% of middle and high school students say they have received sexually explicit images or videos. Keep in mind that the above statistic does not include text, only images. About 13% say that they have sent a sexually explicit video or photo; usually at the request of the boyfriend/girlfriend. Of those receiving such a picture, over 25 percent indicated that they had forwarded it to others.

Making appropriate and ethical referrals for students in need

During any kind of cyber investigation or even in conversations with parents or teachers the officer may come across information that may require or fall under legally regulated privacy protections. The information may also require several referrals or actions to be taken. It is imperative to follow the applied ethics training from earlier, concerning what a person is obligated to do in a specific situation or a particular domain of action. This type of situation may include mandated report requirements, HIPPA, metal heath information concerns, etc. This investigation can result in an arrest for sex crimes or other illegal behaviors. 

Officers must be prepared to take ethical action in law and in the best interest of the child (not the school or any other groups or parental interests). Many referrals can be made through district channels for mental health and/or other counseling may be needed. Some issues are beyond the scope of the Officer and should always be referred to the appropriate experts.