The student news site of Colonia High School

The Declaration

Breaking News
  • March 1Good luck to our wrestlers in the State Competition in Atlantic City
  • March 13/2 - Girls’ Basketball State Championship vs. Chatham (away) @ 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm
  • March 13/2 - Boys' Basketball vs. Millburn (home) NJSIAA Tournament, Final Round, North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3 TBA
  • March 1Celebrating read across America this month
  • March 1March is Women's Herstory Month
The student news site of Colonia High School

The Declaration

The student news site of Colonia High School

The Declaration

Poll

Good News! You have the opportunity to live forever, but you must be one age for the rest of your life. Which age would you choose?

Loading...

Sorry, there was an error loading this poll.

Advertisement

How Social Media Affects Young Minds

The+average+age+of+kids+who+are+new+to+social+media+can+be+around+age+11%2C+one+year+after+they+get+their+smartphones.+
Photo Credit: Photo via Marketing land under the Creative Commons License
The average age of kids who are new to social media can be around age 11, one year after they get their smartphones.

Every year the advancement of social media and any type of technology is improving. However, have we ever wondered how social media affects young minds. 

Stats of how often people use social media

As of 2019, there are 3.5 billion people users of social media. As of 2004 social media has been growing rapidly. Some studies show that online connections with small groups of people can be beneficial to teens, while other research points focus on the symptoms of anxiety, depression, and eating disorders. While many people can argue that social media improves many people’s lives, others argue the complete opposite.

Negative effects

A survey done by the Royal Society for Public Health asked 14-24-year-olds in the UK how social media impacted their lives. The survey results found that Snapchat, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram are the most popular apps. However, they also were the leading causes of increased feelings of depression, anxiety, poor body image, and loneliness. This is one of the main negative effects of social media. Another study out of the University of Pittsburgh found those who had spent more time on social media are at twice the risk of reporting eating and body image concerns. This is compared to their peers who spent less time on social media. Other negative effects of social media include addiction, sleep deprivation, cyberbullying and identity theft. Social media mostly affects younger minds which is why most kids now and days have a serious mental condition. 

Positive effects

Social media can be seen as having a lot of negative influences on younger minds, but have we thought about its effects on younger minds in a positive way.  As technology advances so do the education system. It helps teenagers to find out the solutions to their problems without going and asking questions from others. This also provides opinions and suggestions from trainers who have a great experience. Teenagers find it beneficial to learn from their experience and to improve their own work. Social media helps teens advance in their skills and creative ideas. Through the media, they are allowed to communicate with other people with their same skills and advance together. In certain situations media boosts people’s confidence in meeting other people.

Story continues below advertisement

Overall review

In the end, social media has both a negative and positive effect on young minds. Negative effects include depression, cyberbullying and anxiety. While positive effects include boost confidence, advancing skills, and communicating with people all around the world. To find the real answer to the question, how social media affects young minds you must take into perspective all angles.

Leave a Comment
More to Discover
About the Contributor
Shikha Patel, Reporter
Shikha Patel is a fifteen-year-old sophomore at Colonia High School. She is the younger sibling of a college student. Patel has been playing on the Colonia High School tennis teams since she was a freshman and hopes to advance in the team. She hopes to join many more clubs and activities within her high school years. In the future, Patel sees herself working in the medical field more specifically pharmacy. Besides tennis, she has been dancing for 2 years and hopes to participate in competitive dancing. Patel loves to spend time with family and friends. She also loves to travel the world and has traveled throughout Europe and ten other countries.  However, she hopes to travel to Australia and different islands in the future. When it comes to entertainment, Patel loves the show The 100. She is excited to be apart of The Declaration staff and to see what the future holds for her.      

Comments (0)

The Declaration reserved the rights to not publish comments that are offensive, are hurtful, are in bad taste, are not constructive, or are spam.
All The Declaration Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Activate Search
The student news site of Colonia High School
How Social Media Affects Young Minds