Our era has been one of the most remarkable scientific progress. The advent of social networks confirms this dazzling level of development. Today, social media are the fastest and most reliable communication systems for daily human life. The most famous languages or things best shared among young people these days are called: Facebook, Viber, Twitter, Instagram, and Whatsapp… This is the world of digital children because they always have their fingers on the keyboard. However, if social networks offer benefits related to friendship building, entertainment, and even stimulation of intelligence, it is no less confident that they have negative effects on young people. Let’s discover through this article the harmful effects of social networks on young people.
Contents
- 1 Social networks and their impact on mental health
- 2 Adverse consequences of social networks on the studies of young people
- 3 Social networks and moral depravity
- 4 Social networks and the expansion of narcissism
- 5 Social media can cause feelings of loneliness or isolation
- 6 Social media can cause sleep problems
- 7 Social networks entail the risks of dependence
- 8 The harmful impacts of social networks on young people: Are parents worried?
Social networks and their impact on mental health
Social networks do not only present civilized environments; they involve very considerable risks. The magnitude of its consequences on human mental health is enormous. The following statistics bear witness to this:
25% of children aged 8 to 17 were once victims of lies, insults, or rumors;
36% of children aged 8 to 17 have once experienced verbal violence linked to racist or xenophobic comments or homophobic comments;
36% of children aged 8 to 17 have been hurt by comments of a sexual dimension once;
Unfortunately, the rate of child victims who dared to keep their parents informed is only 10%.
However, a prominent lecturer and psycho-pathologist suggested on the British media this: when a child is in the grip of harassment in “real life, “he will find “safe places” as a place of refuge. It can be stored at home, for example. But when a child experiences Cyberbullying, it is almost impossible for them to escape. It is easier to see yourself harassed on the web by people hiding behind unknown identities. This is why cases of suicide following harassment attacks are often recorded in recent years.
According to a study by the Canadian Health Agency of the City of Ottawa, adolescents who continuously spend two hours minimum time on social networks are likely prone to poor mental health. They are the most exposed to psychological distress and especially to thoughts of self-harm and suicide.
Social networks are practically the only channel through which most impulses and affinities pass through messages and images. The situation has become alarming, and parents are worried about the future of their children. Indeed, the young people of this digital age are unrecognizable and ultimately lost in another form of life.
This upheaval in the way of life of young people was born out of the confusion they make between fiction and reality. Everything they discover on the internet is virtual, that is, possible or achievable. And this can be understood all the more since today’s social networks represent the real channels of increased freedom of expression.
The immediate consequence is that most young people prefer to devote all their study time to social networks. These social media has become their drug; they cannot do without it.
Social networks and moral depravity
Everything suggests that addiction is not just linked to alcohol or drugs. With today’s teenagers, it’s more of an addiction to social media. What is even more shocking is that privacy is being trampled on. The simple reason is that children do not measure the photos, videos, and messages they send.
However, once the publications are made, it is impossible to delete them. This raises the question of the depravity of morals and more severe still, young people looking for employment are compromised. Note that the creation of Whatsapp, Viber, Skype, and Facebook … embodies the paroxysm of freedom of expression. It is the end of “taboo” subjects and the burial of cultures and traditions. Sex is becoming the most crucial focus of most debates among young people. It mobilizes their attention and distracts them from objectives that instead engage their future.
Social networks and the expansion of narcissism
The magic of the airwaves makes social networks the fastest dissemination machines. In the blink of an eye, you can send an image around the world. It is the perfect channel to internationalize a photo, video, or message in seconds. This is precisely the dream universe of young people who have the madness of celebrity. With the famous “like” button, the door is open to all young people who have the popularity gene in their blood. To nurture their ambition to be known worldwide, the only slogan is that you have to reveal your life by posting your often sexy photo to collect “likes.” But what naivety!
Social media can cause feelings of loneliness or isolation
Once again, we would like to remind you that social networks’ abuse is not without negative consequences on human life. It is always in this logic that the research of individual American scientists of the Faculty of Medicine of Pittsburgh (in Pennsylvania) falls.
Many people digitize their human relationships without realizing it because they spend hours and hours on the web instead of making appointments. However, although the world may be digital, relationships between men are severe and reliable only when direct or physical contact. Despite everything, we are social beings whose human relationships should be strengthened by social platforms instead of breaking up.
Social media can cause sleep problems
We can all agree that school asthenia (fatigue or fatigue) has several sources. Many studies like that of Katherine W. Keyes on sleep duration in children point the finger at social networks as the fundamental cause of insufficient sleep in juveniles. Compared to the findings, it is, above all, “YouTube, ” which is on the dock. It would very negatively compromise the nap of users of social networks. Indeed, the screens’ connection and lighting would have dangerous impacts on man’s average sleep time. Give order for manage your social media activities to social media management services and sleep well.
Social networks entail the risks of dependence
The problem of social media addiction was partially addressed at the start of our article. But we have found it useful to take it further to draw everyone’s attention to its seriousness for young people today. Indeed, you have already found yourself next to a friend who, during lunch or dinner, had his eyes immobilized by his Smartphone. Maybe to post the meal that has just been served or to comment on other photos or respond to friends’ messages! It’s downright insignificant to spend your lunchtime continuing to connect to social media.
And if, like him, you happen to feel the need to go on the web while the connection is faulty, it is because you are undoubtedly passionate about it like your friend and many other users. Some research even attempts to equate the effects of social media with those of narcotics such as drugs. Once you taste it, you are always tempted to indulge in it. This reminds me of the first time I accessed the Facebook, Whatsapp, and Messenger platforms. It was so magical that there was no point in anyone trying to talk me out or distract me.
It should be said simply that while some parents underestimate or misunderstand the harmful effects of the abusive use of social networks, others remain very attentive to it. So, it was important for our editorial staff to get closer to individual parents to get their opinions. And we can say that the observation makes you think a lot. Indeed, most of the responses converge on the same idea of awareness: “We know that the excessive use of social networks influences the way of life of our children.”
However, it turns out that children are out of their control, which constitutes a real equation challenging to solve. The only alternative, if only to reduce the consequences soon, remains awareness. The choice to engage in discussions with children to make them aware of social networks’ negative impacts remains the best possibility.
