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Effects of Social Media On Children
Effects of Social Media On Children
Cynthia Ayoub
Maria Sabbah
Sally Shouman
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Effects of Social Media on children
Abstract
There are a lot of disadvantages on children because of the use of social media. In this report
we will talk about the disadvantages of social media on children. Nowadays, our life depends
on social media. Children have a big risk because of the use of social media such as
addiction, lack of communication. Also cyber bullying is quite common. It can occur to any
young person online, and can cause profound psychosocial outcomes including depression,
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Effects of Social Media on children
Social media is about the interaction between groups or individuals in which they produce,
share, and sometimes exchange ideas over the internet and in virtual communities.
Nowadays, youth live on social networks. The media not only serves as a source of
information but also provides a source of entertainment. Children are growing up surrounded
by mobile devices and interactive social networking sites such as Twitter, My Space, and
Facebook, which has made the social media a vital aspect of their life. Social network is
transforming the manner in which young people interacts with their parents, peers, as well as
how they make use of technology. Social media can provide education and entertainment.
First, social media leads to addiction. People waste their time by using Facebook, Whatsapp,
Messenger, and Twitter… Later on, it’s difficult for them to stop using it. Children get
addicted to the use of internet because nobody follows them up and monitors them. Children
prefer to chat with friends, and this leads to a waste of time. Instead of chatting, they could
Second, social media causes cyber bullying. Cyber bullying is using electronic
nature. It is the most common online risk for all teens and is a peer-to-peer risk. Using social
media always put children in a risk of cyber bullying. It can occur to every person and more
to children since they are not aware of what they are doing. This can cause psychological
communication appears through face-to-face imitation. They should see a person who speaks
and act in order to be more social. So when people communicate face-to-face with each
other’s, they use non-verbal communication such as face expressions, eye contact, voice tone
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Effects of Social Media on children
and verbal communication like words. Using excessively social media decrease social skills
because people often communicate in a digital way where verbal communication doesn’t
appear.
Social media makes children isolated. Most of children will prefer to stay alone in order to
chat, play games and watch videos on the internet. This will lead to isolation and they will
begin to feel lonely. As a result, they will spend less time with their families, friends. Their
hobbies will decrease and they will lose their social relationship. Furthermore, their
communication at school will be affected because they don’t spend time with people. For
example, people who are addicted to Facebook are unhappy and vice versa.
In addition to that, social media lets children receive sexual content message. Pictures and
videos are distributed among children who use computers or mobiles. These children are
more likely to imitate such states and it causes to them psychological problems. In addition to
that, it affects their performance at school. Because of that, children will become violent
when they communicate with their classmates. For example, some parents are not awared of
this risk to which they expose their child when they post pictures of their children in the bath
or in their swimsuit. That can have a negative effect on the children after a time.
Also, social media can lead to health problem and disease. Obesity is one of the major
problem that children encounter. They spend hours and hours watching television or playing
games. This causes physical inactivity which leads to obesity. Most children suffer from
obesity due to time spend on the internet. They don’t exercise. In addition to that, using
internet excessively leads to dry eyes. When a child focuses on his laptop, he will have a
decline in his spinal column because he uses uncomfortable seats. Children may suffer from
lack of sleep because they prefer to use social media rather than sleeping.. children’s eyes are
more sensitive and they should take extra precautions .For some children, the rapidly flashing
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Effects of Social Media on children
images of certain websites and games can trigger epileptic seizures, according to authors of
"The Impact of Home Computer Use on Children’s Activities and Development," published
by Princeton University.
Moreover, social media has a role in increasing usage of alcohol. A study has been done and
it shows that teens who drink alcohol spend more time on the internet on social networking
sites than others who don’t drink alcohol. Teenagers use drugs, alcohol after interacting with
people who consume these items. Drinking alcohol leads to many problems in the brain.
Also, it causes health’s problems. Sometimes when a child drinks, he may do something that
he didn’t mean to do. However they may drink to create their own lifestyle and to be
independent.
In conclusion, it is good for people to acknowledge both the advantages and disadvantages of
social media because they can aid take the essential steps to enjoy the social media and be on
the safe side of the negative impacts of the social media. If people acknowledge what is
happening within the social media, they get a clear view of what to anticipate and whether or
not it is something that would want or would do without it. Social media has become part of
the people lives. People can’t escape from the disadvantages of the social media as long they
continue using it without a clear view about it. It is all about the direction an individual select
and on how to go about it. Nevertheless, social media plays a significant role in the society as
well as all over the world, and with the increasing growth of technology; it is likely that
social media grow with it. Thus, it is good to consider the advantages and disadvantages of
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Effects of Social Media on children
References
Abhishek Kara dkar (Sep 13,2015). The impact of social media on student life.
Retrieved from http://www.technicianonline.com/opinion/article_d1142b70-
5a92-11e5-86b4-cb7c98a6e45f.html
New behavioral Health Staff Writer’s blog. The impact of social media use on
social skills. Retrieved from http://newyorkbehavioralhealth.com/the-impact-of-
social-media-use-on-social-skills
Josh Patrick. (Feb 18,2015). Physical and Social Effects of Internet Use in
Children. Retrieved from https://www.livestrong.com/article/516549-physical-
and-social-effects-of-internet-use-in-children/
Josh Patrick. (Feb 18,2015). Physical and social effects of internet use in
children.
Tibi Puiu. (June 13, 2013). Teen drinking linked to internet use. Retrieved from
https://www.zmescience.com/research/teenage-drinking-link-internet-434324/
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