Teenagers who do not have access to the Internet and social networks are less likely to have good self-esteem, the fault of a disconnection from technology which excludes them from other children.
- On average, an adult over the age of 16 spends 40% of their waking life on the internet.
- In France, 43% of children aged 0 to 2 use the Internet.
Screen time is much less harmful to children than parents think. Rather, we should be more concerned about adolescents who are “disconnected from today’s technologies” and “more isolated from their peers”. This is at least what a researcher from Michigan State University, in the United States, whose work has been published in the journal Social Science Computer Review.
Rural teens are the most disconnected
“A lot of young people have mental health issues, explains Professor Keith Hampton, in a communicated. While teens often struggle with self-esteem issues related to body image, peers, family, and school, disconnection is a far greater threat than screen time. .”
A large proportion of adolescents, living mainly in rural areas, have no choice but to be disconnected. They live in extremely low-bandwidth households, so they often have no internet access outside of school, or only sporadically with their smartphones.
What is the link between social media and self-esteem?
Keith Hampton and his team of researchers wanted to know if there was a link between self-esteem and the social activities of adolescents with little or no access to the Internet and those who frequently use the screen and are moderated by parents. They based themselves on a survey of 3,258 rural American teenagers.
As a result, they found that teens who had low Internet access at home and teens whose parents exercised the most control over their media use also had significantly lower self-esteem. Conversely, the time teenagers spend on screens – whether watching videos, playing games or using social media – has not played a big role in the adolescent self-esteem. Even teenagers who were users “excessive” of screeners said they had better self-esteem than those who were offline.
“More harm than good”
Why ? Because “Social media and video games are deeply embedded in youth culture and do more than entertain, explains the teacher. They help children socialize, contribute to identity formation and provide a channel for social support.”
While there are real mental health risks associated with screen addiction, “to perpetuate the myth that teens who spend more time on their devices spend less time with friends and family, and that excessive time online harms the mental health of most teens, does more harm than good”concludes Keith Hampton.