Hunter Henstock
Ms. Lehmann
English 2-2A
6 February 2020
Social Media Problems
Seneca once said,” Everything that exceeds the bonders of moderation has an unstable foundation.” This applies to social media as well. Social media’s impact on teens is complicated, affecting well-being, connections with others, and even academic performance. In order to be wise users of social media, teens need to know how it impacts their well-being
The effect of social media on teens’ well-being is complicated. Social media offers teens the ability to talk to people with similar experiences, challenges, and struggles anonymously, which gives them desired support. James el al write, “The ability to communicate anonymously can mitigate barriers, such as shame, that interfere with support-seeking offline” (72). The authors explain that social media allows teens to ask for help and receive support they might not ask for otherwise because they can remain anonymous. While social media does offer anonymous support, that is not the only way adolescents use social media. Often times, people who use social media compare themselves to others or even experience crimes such as cyberbullying. James et al explain the negative impacts of social media on young adults’ well- being. “Several investigations documents correlations between heavy media use and reduced well-being – related outcomes, such as diminished life satisfaction, internalizing negative experiences, and various dimensions of ill-being, such as depression, anxiety, attention problems, and stress” (James et al 72). When social media is used too much or irresponsibly, it can have serious, negative effects on people’s lives. Limiting time on social media and using it responsibly could help increase the positive effects on well-being while decreasing the negative. Social media not only impacts well-being, but can influence our relationships to other people as well.
When examining the effects of social media, we cannot only examine the media itself, but must also consider the personalities of its users. “The child’s personality – not the platform – is the more important factor when determining the influence of social media” (K.Y. 18). Every social media user is different, so its impacts are different for every user. The one consistent finding is that an excessive use of social media increases its negative effects. Social media can bring out the negative in people. “Nearly two thirds (64 percent) of teens said they often or sometimes come across racist, sexist, homophobic or religious-based hate content in social media” (K.Y. 18). The evidence shows that bad attitudes over social media can make teens feel bad about themselves. When teens use social media, they should use it carefully.
Some argue that social media has only positive effects. While this sounds good, the reality is that social media’s impact is complicated and can be negative. Research has shown that too much time spent on screen media has a negative impact on academic performance. Peiró- Velert et al write, “Regarding academic performance, overall sedentary SMU [ Screen Media Usage] is related to it, either because screen time displaces homework and learning ... or because it involves intermediate processes that negatively affect academic performance” (7). When young adults use social media excessively, it lowers sleep time, which causes lower academic achievement. It is obvious that social media’s effects are not all positive. Social media is complicated and should be used responsibly.
Teens can control how social media affects them. If teens use social media wisely, it can improve their well-being, connection with others, and academic performance. Monitoring time spent on social media can curb negative effects. When spending time in person with others, teens can strengthen connection by putting down their phones. Scheduling time to be off the phone and sleep can improve academic performance. By exercising moderation in social media use, teen can create a more stable foundation for their lives.
Work Cited
James, Carrie, Katie Davis, Linda Charmarman, Sara Konrath, Petr Slouak, Emily Wenstein
and Lana Yarosh. “Digital Life and Youth Well-Being, Social Connectedness Empathy, and Narcissism.” Pediatrics,
vol. 140, no. S2, November 2017, pp. 71-75 Academic Search Premier, doi: 10.1542/ peds. 2016 –1785F. Accessed 21
January 2020
K.Y. “Social Media and Teen.” School Library Journal, vol. 64, no.10, pp 18-18 October 2016
Academic Search Premier, Accessed 21 January 2020.
Peró-Velert, Camen, Alexandria Valencia-peris, Luis M. Gonzale, Xavier Garcia-Massó
Pilar Serra Añó, and Jose Devís-Devís. “Screen Media Usage, Sleep Time and
Academic performance in Adolescents: Clustering a Self- Organizing Map Analysis”
PLOS ONE, vol.9, no.6, June 2014, pp 1-9. Academic Search Premier, doi:
10.1371/jounal.pone.0099478. Accessed February 2020.
Research Paper Reflection
Please answer all questions in complete, grammatically correct sentences.
1. Explain the process you went through to write this paper. Please be specific.
I read multiple articals, we then picked parts out, then wright them down
2. What qualifies this paper as an argumentative essay? What are the requirements for this genre and how did you meet them?
That i disagreed with others oppinons
3. Explain one thing you learned about reading research or taking notes on research that you can apply to your next research paper.
I leaned how to take cornal notes and put it in a reasherch papper