Understanding Social Media’s Impact on Adolescents
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.58445/rars.4307Keywords:
Social media, Mental health, AdolescentsAbstract
Social media plays an increasingly major role in adolescents’ (14–17-year-olds) lives, influencing their mental health, social interactions and relationships, identity formation, personality, and everyday behaviors. This paper examines the benefits and risks of adolescent social media use, understanding how individual characteristics shape its positive and negative effects. Excessive use, social comparison, cyberbullying, negative comments, and exposure to influencers can contribute to lower self-esteem, anxiety, being unwell, and changes in adolescents’ opinions about themselves. Influencers and online interactions can also shape adolescents' belief systems and attitudes. Conversely, social media can offer valuable opportunities for adolescents to express themselves, maintain friendships, discover shared interests with peers, receive emotional support, and develop a sense of belonging. This paper emphasizes that the effects of social media depend not only on screen time but also on the context of online engagement. It highlights the struggles adolescents face in managing their social media use, including fear of missing out (FOMO) and platform features that nudge users to check constantly. This paper also examines the effects of digital literacy education, parental and peer support, responsible platform design, and school policies that help adolescents maintain healthier digital experiences, and it highlights how schools should help students develop the skills to use technology responsibly and effectively rather than resorting to smartphone bans. Finally, the paper highlights the need for further research to better understand its effects on adolescent development.
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