It’s Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens

Chapter 3

Addiction

Addiction• “Addiction is a relatively modern concept.” (Boyd, 2014, p.80)

• Addiction was originally known as a “strong interest in or devotion to a particular pursuit.” (Boyd, 2014, p.81)

• Addiction as we know it today took hold in the early twentieth century as it became a medical concern

• It was initially referred to only as substance abuse but eventually came to include behavioral compulsions

• Psychiatrist Ivan Goldberg satirically coined Internet addiction disorder in 1995

• He doesn’t think Internet addiction disorder exists because “people can overdue anything.” (Boyd, 2014, p.82)

• Addiction is often over-emphasized rhetoric

• Anything that distracts time away from what society views as socially acceptable is now seen as addictive behavior

• New technology is used to place blame on children who can’t control their temptations

• Instead of placing blame on teenagers and technology by classifying their social media habits as a disease we should look towards the underlying reasons as to why they seek out technology

• Teens want to have access to a social world and social media grants them that access

Social Media• According to Merriam-Webster dictionary social media constitutes “forms of electronic

communication (as Web sites for social networking and microblogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content (as videos)”

• A survey conducted by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University found that “70 percent of teenagers age 12 to 17 spend time on a social media site in a typical day, which amounts to 17 million teenage users.”

• Social media provides an informal learning environment for teens to explore the social world and develop a sense of self by interacting with others

• Young people are able to learn to develop social skills by seeing how information flows between people, interacting, and forming new relationships

• Young people embrace new technologies and are excited to learn new skills

• Schools are now incorporating social learning into their curriculum to account for collaborative work environments

• Social media is a form of entertainment that lets teens wind down to relax after a long day of scheduled activities

Growing Up with Limited

• Teens are at a stage when they have little control over their lives and who they see

• Teens have limited access to cars and transportation, which reduces their mobility

• Parents limit the freedom of connectivity with friends and others outside of school

• Teens have little say in this process as they go about living their highly scheduled lives

• They have less free time to socialize with friends outside of school, as parents see it as wasting time

• Social media allows teens to take back control over their own socialization and their relationship with society

• It allows them to stay connected with friends and peers, to see photos, and to read updates or comments

• It allows for informal interactions, free from parental surveillance and control

• It gives them space to make choices, free from parental restrictions and guidance

Freedom

Parents&

Social Media

• Psychologist G. Stanley Hall attempted to define adolescence around the turn of the twentieth century

• He thought that “adolescence marked a developmental stage in which young people began to recognize morality”

• This sentiment brought along a long-standing change in American society towards viewing adolescents as a vulnerable and potentially troublesome populace

• This sentiment continues today through the rhetoric of overprotective parents

• Parents blame technology as distracting their children from what they as parents deem more important tasks

• Parents view the time children spend on social media as evidence for addiction

• They view it as a “preferring computers to real people”

• This is a fundamental misunderstanding of their child's use of social media

• Teens would much rather meet with friends in real life rather than online, however they are limited by parents who are frozen by fear

Society of Fear• In today’s safety-obsessed society teenagers are allotted less freedom to go out and wander the world

on their own

• Much of the reason behind this revolves around the fear placed in them by overly concerned parents

• Parents feel the need to socially isolate their children to protect them from dangers of other parents

• Teens are warned of the danger that lurks outside and the risks of being unsupervised

• Parents put restrictions on teen independence and set up highly structured lives

• The beliefs of parents become engrained and are often self-enforced by the teen

• Curfew and loitering laws limit teen access to public places

• The fear of new technology and loss of control also contributes to the fearful rhetoric displaced among parents

• Teens now have access to more information than ever, which means access to differing viewpoints from those of their parents

• Parents have always feared new things: music, phones, television, video games

• Now, in part due to the sensationalized media, they fear social media could be re-wiring their teens brains causing them to be addicted

The Media

• The media often sensationalizes technology addiction

• Any sign of a decrease in school performance is automatically assumed to be from too much social media. It is the easy thing to blame

• Popular media often perpetuates the myth that addiction is a problem with youth culture

• (Reefer Madness, Rock Idol Overdoses (Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison), Go Ask Alice, Trainspotting, Drugstore Cowboy, The Basketball Diaries, Skins, Celebrity Rehab)

• Celebrity substance abuse and addiction is promoted through tabloids and other media

• Youth often embrace these headlines as celebrities are glamorized and celebrated for their addictions

• Even after death, celebrities like Amy Winehouse were celebrated by youth on Twitter by using #27club to signify her joining other famous musicians who have all died of overdoses at the same age of twenty-seven

With all that said, are there any downsides to teen social media usage?

• According to Dr. Karrie Lager, a child psychologist practicing in Los Angeles, “excessive internet use can have serious negative consequences”

• “Researchers have found some behavioral similarities between excessive Internet use and substance abuse, including tolerance, withdrawal, unsuccessful attempts to cut back and impairment in functioning.”

• A survey conducted by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University found that “Those that interact via social media on a daily basis are five times likelier to use tobacco, three times likelier to use alcohol, and twice as likely to use marijuana.”

• In addition, “Forty percent of these teens surveyed admit to having seen pictures of people under the influence, and are four times likelier to use marijuana than those who haven’t scrolled through these images.”

• This all makes sense given the nature of teen peer pressure. By seeing friends use drugs on social media it desensitizes teens to drugs by making it seem like they are harmless

Conclusion• Internet addiction is a real issue and caution should be

taken• However, the media helps sensationalize and even

promotes stories of teen addiction• This helps contribute to the fear rhetoric brought about

by parents• Teens of today have limited control over their own

social lives as parental limitations and strict scheduling leave little time to socialize

• Social media grants them the freedom to socialize, relax, and even learn

Sources• Boyd, Danah, (2014). It’s Complicated: The Social Lives of

Networked Teens.New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press.• Stein, E. (2014, May 7). Is Social Media Dependence A

Mental Health Issue?. . Retrieved July 14, 2014, from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/07/social-media-mental-health_n_5268108.html

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