Finding the right balance in the amount of time teenagers spend online could be good for their wellbeing, according to a study from Trinity College Dublin. According to sociologists, poor psychological well-being among adolescents is often associated with both low and high levels of digital engagement. For the study, the experts researched the Goldilocks theory among teenagers in Ireland for the first time. According to this, moderate engagement with digital media is not harmful in itself.
Non-use has consequences
High engagement in digital media has been shown to significantly predict poorer outcomes for both boys and girls. Low use is associated with poorer mental health in both cohorts. Additionally, it predicts problems with peers in girls. According to co-author Richard Layte, the evidence that Internet use is harmful to adolescents is mixed. The current findings provided worrying evidence of real dangers that required urgent action.
According to Layte, it is not simply the case that more is worse. “It is important to emphasize that online engagement is now a normal channel of social participation and that not using it has consequences. Our study results also show the possibility that moderate use is important in today's digital world and that little time spent online brings its own risks." Now the challenge for research is to use the fairy tale of Goldilocks to find exactly the right one Figure out amount of time online.
Study with 6,000 young people
6,000 young people in Ireland took part in the current study. The longitudinal data comes from the Growing Up in Ireland study. Online behavior and psychological well-being were examined at age 13 and again in late teens. Participants reported how much time they spent online and what they did. This included sending messages, posting content on social media, doing school work, or streaming content. Mental health was covered by questions about feelings, behavior and problems with peers.
According to lead researcher Ross Brannigan, there are clear distinctions between groups that spend similar amounts of time online but differ in their online behavior. This suggests that the consideration of behavior and the nature of this behavior is important here - is it passive versus active behavior or what types of behavior are shown, such as social, academic or entertainment. Details were published in “Computers in Human Behavior”.
Source: pte
Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )