The Effect of the Internet on Teenagers - Research Paper Example

The Effect of Internet on Teenagers Annotated Bibliography Source Wellman, Barry, and Haythornthwaite, Caroline A. (2002). The Internet in Everyday Life. Wiley-Blackwell. Two college professors, Wellman and Haythornwaite have written this book. They both have extensive experience of working with students who are exposed to students to a significant amount of internet use. This book is therefore, a reliable as well as reader-friendly source of information about this topic. Source 2) K. K. (2008). What effect does using the internet have on children and teenagers? Retrieved from www.associatedcontent.com/article/718369/what_effect_does_using_the_internet.html?cat=25 This source is from an online article found on a website, which offers summarized information about different and numerous aspects of one’s lifestyle. This source may not offer details about the research and information that it displays, but if offers a summarized version of the effects of internet usage on teenagers, in a way which is useful for discussion in the informative essay part of the essay. Source 3) Benjamin, J. (1999). The internets effect on teenagers. Informally published manuscript, Cooper City High School, Retrieved from http://jbenjamin.org/research99/report.html This source is an unpublished study carried out by a student himself, and uses various reliable journals and books and online references as references, which make is a reliable source of information for this essay. Additionally, it explores numerous dimensions of the topic, thus making it a useful source. The student has his own website where he posts his research. Source 4) Louge, N. (2006). Adolescents and the internet. Family Life Development Center, Cornell University, Ithica, NY. Retrieved from http://www.actforyouth.net/documents/Oct061.pdf This source is a part of a research project undertaken in the collaboration of Cornell, University of Rochester, and the New York State Center for School Safety. It is an active effort by them to study the pervasive effects the internet has on the youth, thus making it a good source of information for this essay. Source 5) Suzuki, L.K., & Calzo, J.P. (2004). “The search for peer advice in cyberspace: An examination of online teen bulletin boards about health and sexuality.” Applied Developmental Psychology. Volume 25, pp. 685- 698. This source is a helpful and reliable one, for this topic. Conducted under professional settings, it discusses studies that tell us about the significance of the internet in the lives of developing adults. Source 6) Cassell, J., Huffaker, D., Tversky, D., & Ferriman, K. (2006). “The language of online leadership: Gender and youth engagement on the Internet.” Applied Developmental Psychology. Volume 42, pp. 436-449. This source is a journal article that explores the positive side of internet use on teenagers. It is a reliable as well as an extensively helpful resource, which aids this essay largely. Research Paper Outline Para 1) Introduction: thesis statement- The growing use of internet amongst teenagers is seen to have both positive and negative social, psychological, and other effects on these young adults. Quote (Louge, 2006) about how many teens use the net nowadays Para 2) Discuss benefits Benefit: gives access to teenagers to information they may need but do not know how to get. Helps with their development Para3) Benefit: is healthy for community-building Para4) Benefit: leads to higher GPAs – i.e. better students. Para 5) benefit: helps shy teenagers practice their social skills / social pressures (mention safety issues with that) Para 6) Con: exposes children to sexually explicit material that can be psychologically damaging. Para 7) Con: numerous safety issues: meeting strangers online, sex trafficking Para 8) Con: Teens learn to hide behind online interaction- they tend to see it as a substitute for online interaction – it can be detrimental to their ability to face real life situations – creating of fake images/identities Para 9) Con: they get addicted to their online activities and they began ignoring the real world, and the people physically present around them as well as other responsibilities. Informative Essay In the fast developing world of today, we can see how quickly the trends of computer use are becoming popular. This effect is visible in the daily lives of people, the professional lives of adults, as well as the educational lives of students. While this change brings with itself, numerous benefits in terms of both increasing work efficiency, and simplifying the hectic and busy lives of people, it brings with it, a plethora of side effects. Particularly interesting, are the effects this increasing rate of internet use has on the teenagers. Teenagers are exposed to the internet in various aspects of their lives. As students, they utilize this resource endlessly for research, assignments, and other such educational purposes. In addition, they consider the internet as a source of entertainment, as it connects them to the ever-changing recreational world outside their homes. Through the internet, they gain access to the media available outside, movies, music, celebrity gossip, and online gaming. Each of these has a part in the life of most teenagers as they grow up. Apart from this, one of the major uses that the internet holds for teenagers today is the connection it offers to them to the rest of the world. Online chatting facilities, like Skype, MSN, and Yahoo, enable them to have lengthy conversations with people all over the world, be it through typing, audio, or video contact. Online chat rooms give them access to a worldwide forum, where they can meet people who share the same opinions or interests as them, and discuss numerous topics endlessly. Finally, there are several social interactive websites, like Facebook and Twitter, which help them meet friends from any corner of the world, as well as stay in touch with friends and family. With all these numerous applications that the internet holds in the daily life of an average teenager, it is no surprise that the effect the internet has on these young adults is a prominent and visible one. Psychologists continuously observe and research these numerous effects, as researchers realize the significance of some of these effects on the very futures of our own countries since these teenagers will be the ones in charge in a matter of a few decades. This research covers numerous different effects observed in these teenagers. Effects on their social interaction with the rest of the world are one of the most prominent areas of interest. Researchers argue that while the internet draws the teenager away from family and friends and towards a computer screen, it also opens up their social interaction on a wider, global scale. Apart from this, psychological effects that excessive internet use has on these young impressionable minds, have also received a significant amount of attention. These effects revolve around the amount of information available to the teenager, who may be used to living a rather sheltered and protected life, courtesy their parents. The researchers have also studied the motor and cognitive abilities of the frequent internet user, in search for any differences they might hold from teenagers who do not use the internet as frequently. These also include the research done on the rates of depression found amongst the users of internet (K. K., 2008). With these numerous consequences of internet use by teenagers, the real question that comes to mind is whether this facility, which was considered a godsend that would revolutionize life, as we know it a decade ago, is as marvelous as it was thought to be then. What one needs to do is a rational cost-benefit-analysis of the pros and cons of using this resource. Teenagers will most likely object to the mention of any harmful side effects that the internet has on them, since from their perspective; it offers them a much larger number of benefits. However, these effects are significant for anyone who understands how important it is to consider all aspects of a child’s life, which affect their development. Running Head: The Effect of Internet on Teenagers The Effect on Internet on Teenagers [Writer’s Name] [Institute’s Name] The Effect of Internet on Teenagers The internet is a source of information that promised to revolutionize life, with its arrival a couple of decades ago. Since then, it has more than lived up to this mission, by facilitating life at every step for humankind. One particular age group, which seems to derive the most use out of this facility, is the teenage population. In particular, the American teenage population is a major contributor towards this statistic. Eighty percent of the American youth, from the ages of 12 to 17, use the internet, while around half of these are reported to use the internet on a daily basis (Louge, 2006). This spreading use of the internet amongst the youth has a number of social, psychological, and other effects on these children, who while deriving high levels of benefit from it, are not immune to the numerous side effects this resource may have on them. There are both pros and cons attached to the extended use of internet, both of which on should consider when evaluating the usefulness of internet in one’s life. One majorly positive effect the use of internet has on teenagers is that it aids their development as far as learning about sensitive issues in society is concerned. In many societies all over the world, it is almost a ritual to shelter children from most types of information, which could possibly decrease their innocence. For example, in many countries, parents are hesitant to inform their children about issues like sexual interaction. This hesitation, while easy to understand, ignores the necessity of sharing such information with the children. It is only after the teenager learns about sexual interaction, can they learn about the numerous precautions involved with it, and all the dangers that entail this activity, like sexually transmitted diseases and even pregnancy risks. The internet offers a healthy alternative to keeping these children oblivious to these realities. It offers them an unlimited source of information pertaining to socially sensitive issues such as sex and interpersonal relationships (Suzuki & Calzo, 2004). This is a very significant contributor for children, and it can be detrimental to their development to be sheltered from such information while growing up. This applies especially for developing countries, such as Accra in Ghana where the youth uses the internet to access such information, which would otherwise be difficult, if not impossible to get from their guardians or schools (Cassell et al, 2006). This outlines one very positive effect internet has on teenagers. Another positive outcome for teenagers as result of using internet is that this greatly aids community building for them. The internet provides these teens with various means of interacting with the society around them, and voicing their opinions and ensuring that they feel their significance is apparent in that portion of society. This offers them an effective platform to practice and build up their leadership skills and explore their own abilities, without the social barrier of expectations and social norms to hold them back from truly realizing their own potentials and interest. This is a large contributor to character building for a teenager, and greatly aids the development of a growing person. Psychologists outline the significance of this effect, by emphasizing how it brings about a sense of accountability in one’s community, which leads to the development of a healthy sense of responsibility (Louge, 2006). Researchers have also found that teenagers often derive a few benefits from internet use, which are specific to their social class. A recent study shows how it is advantageous for children from lower income groups to use the internet. The subjects of this study show that they have, on average, a higher grade point average (GPA), as compared to students who use the internet less frequently (Lounge, 2006). To understand this effect, one can subjectively evaluate many different advantages the internet offers these children. It may be due to the numerous educational and research facilities available to the children on the world wide web, which aid their schoolwork, as opposed to students who are learning solely from books and their own knowledge. Alternately, since these students from the study were from lower income groups, it can be explained by the fact that the internet offers them a portal into a world where they can have equal opportunities as those children who are of a higher financial status and can afford more than these children can. Furthermore, the internet also positively affects teenagers who are shy and hesitant to interact socially. It provides them with a means of meeting people without social pressures that the situation awkward and discouraging for them. In addition, it helps them express themselves more clearly, as using the internet, even those children who are normally afraid to speak in public, are able to express their opinions, become heard, and feel prominent. This again is a very encouraging experience for such teenagers, who may be capable of accomplishing great things but are too hesitant and nervous to give themselves a chance. In addition, the increased rate of social interaction which internet use results in can instill a high level of confidence in these children. Other than this, making friends on the internet may decrease the depressive and suicidal tendencies which are found often in teens who have very few or no friends. For all of these reasons, the increased amounts of social interaction internet use offers teenagers can have many positive effects on them. It should however, be noted, that there are many dangers involved with letting a teenager use the internet for socializing without monitoring this interaction of theirs. It is a controversial issue whether the above-mentioned benefits they derive from this socializing offset the numerous risks involved with the activity. It is perhaps fair to conclude that these benefits should be availed only if there is a certain amount of monitoring being done by the parents (Wellman and Haythornwaite, 2002). There are always two sides to an issue, and the disadvantageous side to internet usage by teenagers is perhaps just as extensive as the advantageous side. There are detrimental effects caused to the young minds of the users, which make the usefulness of the internet quite questionable. These harmful effects range from social to psychological effects, and encompass many aspects of a child’s development. According to a National attitudinal poll held in the US, about eighty five percent of parents believe that amongst all forms of media available to their children, they consider the internet to pose the greatest risk of all (Louge, 2006). One such negative effect the internet has on these children is because of the exposure the internet gives them to pornographic and sexually explicit material. “According to a survey done by the London School of Economics in 2002, ninety percent of children aged from eight to sixteen, viewed pornography on the internet” (Louge, 2006). These actions are highly probably to have negative effects on their brains, as the sexually explicit material does not match their mental levels at these ages. Another negative find associated with this statistic was that most of these children had view this material by accident, while searching online for homework or some other harmless reason (Louge, 2006). This shows us how the internet can easily ruin even the well-intentioned young surfers of the internet. It shows us how much potential harm the internet can do to a teenager’s mind, if their use of the internet is unmonitored, or if they do not receive precaution about such aspects of the internet. Another major risk involved with the usage of internet by teenagers is the lack of safety that the teenager faces when online. As mentioned above, several teenagers use the internet to socialize with the rest of the world. They might use this is a primary source of making friends through social networking websites, or may end up meeting people and befriending them as they make play online interactive games or participate in chat room discussions. Research shows that there are mentally unhealthy effects on children who are parts of such virtual communities, with increased incidence of self-harming tendencies and eating disorders amongst them as compared to teenagers who are not part of such virtual communities (Whitlock et al, 2006). Apart from this, research shows that many of the people these teens meet online in these ways are elder people who are lying about their age. These people are often strangers with dangerous intentions, and they often try to lure these unsuspecting teenagers into meeting them in person or performing other morally questionable acts online. Apart from this, they can also fool the young users of the internet into sharing important information, which the strangers can use against them later. A nationwide poll shows that half of all teenagers aged 13 to 18, admitted to having talked to someone online whom they had never met. Moreover, one third of these children had even made plans to meet these ‘net friends’ (Polly Klaas Foundation, 2006). This way, unsuspecting children can also become involved in instances of drug trafficking, which is another possibility, which may make the internet seem more dangerous than useful. This proves how vulnerable these children can be in such threatening and dangerous situations, and how important it is for their parents to keep watch while their children surf the World Wide Web. Frequent internet usage can also harm teenagers by making them too comfortable with the idea of dealing with every situation in life from behind a screen. It creates a false sense of security by making them believe that the world is a place where they can hide behind a false identity, and deal with all life problems using a keyboard and a mouse. They fail to see the reality and gravity in some serious life problems (Benjamin, 1999). They began to see their actions to have minimum social repercussions. In addition, many of these online socializing teenagers began seeing these online interactions as substitutes to real life interactions, without realizing the magnitude of the difference between the two. One of the very well known negative side effects that this online interaction has on teenagers is that it leads to many of them getting addicted to these online activities. They may be learning to interact more with the world and people their computer introduces them to, but at the cost of their interaction with their families and friends. They may become introverts who hesitate to speak as openly in person as they do online. In addition, they may start preferring to spend time with their online friends and resultantly spend less time with their families, which in itself is a very detrimental effect, which can lead to many problems for them later on (Subrahmanyam et al., 2006). These negative effects are apparent in subjects from numerous different studies. However, one rather surprising finding from a study was that majority of teenagers who use the internet excessively, do not feel like the internet has any negative effect on their social and emotional well-being. They did not associate their habits with any potential danger, and did not consider themselves harmed by their use of the internet in any way, even though these very subjects were also found to experience several of the above-mentioned problems. This raises the need for awareness, for the users. While many of them do realize that there should be a limit to their use of internet, many of them seem completely unaware of this necessity. It is thus the duty of the parents and schools; to not only monitor the usage of internet by these children, but also to educate the children of the harm attached to not using the internet the correct and safe way. It was therefore, no exaggeration that the arrival of the internet would modernize the existence of humankind. It holds numerous uses and advantages for young users, in terms of both education and personal and social development. However, it should not be excluded from consideration, that so many negative effects on teenagers are attached to the internet that the costs often seem to outweigh the benefits. It should be noted, however, that every beneficial thing available to humankind, should be administered in moderate doses. The excessive and unfair use of any resource can turn into abuse, and the internet is no different. It should, therefore be ensured that the internet is not banished from use, but rather used in moderate and monitored doses, to maximize derived benefit and minimize costs. References Benjamin, J. (1999). The internets effect on teenagers. Informally published manuscript, Cooper City High School, Retrieved on October 23, 2010 from http://jbenjamin.org/research99/report.html Cassell, J., Huffaker, D., Tversky, D., & Ferriman, K. (2006). “The language of online leadership: Gender and youth engagement on the Internet.” Applied Developmental Psychology. Volume 42, pp. 436-449. K.K. (2008). What effect does using the internet have on children and teenagers? Retrieved on October 23, 2010 from http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/718369/what_effect_does_using_the_internet.html?cat=25 Louge, N. (2006). Adolescents and the internet. Family Life Development Center, Cornell University, Ithica, NY. Retrieved on October 23, 2010 from http://www.actforyouth.net/documents/Oct061.pdf Polly Klaas Foundation. (2006). Polling Summary. Retrieved on October 23, 2010: www.pollyklaas.org/Internetsafety/Internetpdfs/PollingSummary.pdf Subrahmanyam, K., Greenfield, P.M., & Tynes, B. (2004). “Constructing sexuality and identity in an online teen chat room.” Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology. Volume 25, pp. 651-666. Suzuki, L.K., & Calzo, J.P. (2004). “The search for peer advice in cyberspace: An examination of online teen bulletin boards about health and sexuality.” Applied Developmental Psychology. Volume 25, pp. 685- 698. Wellman, Barry, and Haythornthwaite, Caroline A. (2002). The Internet in Everyday Life. Wiley-Blackwell. Whitlock, J. L., Powers, J. L., & Eckenrode, J. (2006). “The virtual cutting edge: The Internet and adolescent self-injury.” Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology. Volume 42, pp. 407-417. Read More