College Writing Paper 2
Content
Running head: SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
1
COURSE TITLE: College Writing II
COURSE IDENTIFICATION: English 21011
INTRUCTOR: Joshua Diamond
COURSE COMPLETED: Spring 2014
ASSIGNMENT TITLE: Social Issue Analysis Paper
ASSIGNMENT PROJECT DESCRIPTION: The student must pick a topic
he/she finds interesting that has a two sided view (good/bad, positive/negative,
etc.) Give information on the topic and come to a decision at the end on which side
you agree with more. The paper must be 8-10 pages.
REFLECTION: I have included this paper in the portfolio because it was an
important and interesting topic that I chose to write about. What I think this piece
shows about me is my interest in social media and the type affects it may have on
the younger generation. If I had to chance to do this assignment again, I would try
to find more articles that were more geared to what younger kids thought about
social media and the affects THEY think it has on them, and then compare the two.
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
2
Are Social Networking Sites Having a Positive or Negative Affect on the Youths Well Being?
Kaylee McLaughlin
Kent State University
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
3
The younger generation is a very important aspect of life for the simple fact that they
shape what our world will become in 15, 20, even 30 years. As an older generation we know how
far technology has come, and where it is now. We now have huge social media websites such as
facebook, twitter, and instagram that have a major effect on society. The age groups that are most
impacted by social media websites are teens and adolescences. It has become apparent in the
current societal culture that social networking has beneficial and detrimental effects on teens.
Social networking allows people to keep in touch despite of distance separation. For
example, you can stay in touch with your family that may live far away via internet. Also, social
networking sites allow you to connect with not just relatives, but also reconnect with people from
the past. On the other hand, social networking sites are frequently outlets to cyber bulling and
online arguments which often lead to in person fights, and impersonation. All of these things
have an effect on the youth; good and bad.
Social networking sites are starting to overtake people’s actions and how they interact
with one another, especially in young adults. For most young adults, they tend to flock more
towards the internet and social networking sites for information instead of looking in a library,
watching the news, and reading the newspaper. On the contrary, young adults get on these social
networking sites and use them for the greater good. Facebook is a good example of a site that is
used to keep in contact with family members that they may not get to see often or friends that
they fell out of touch with (“Pros and Cons” 1). Social media has the ability to boost a persons’
confidence and possibly make them want to change their ways and improve the community.
There are blogs that are used as support groups for kids that may be going through a rough time
and just need friends to talk if they do not have anyone to talk to at home or at school (“Pros and
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
4
Cons” 6). These social networking sites have a way of uniting people that normally would not be
connected, and soon realize they actually have a lot in common.
However, when young adults use these sites, they tend to lose the ability to interact with
society on a face to face level (“Pros and Cons” 1). For example, they are unable to have a
conversation with someone in person because they are so used to having a screen in front of
them to show their facial expressions and vice versa. Also, it can have a negative effect on
younger children’s brains, giving them a high risk for ADHD (“Pros and Cons” 1). Studies have
shown that students who have used social networking sites while they were studying scored
about 20% lower than the average student that didn’t use social networking sites (“Pros and
Cons” 1). Because they have more access to surf the internet then when in a library setting,
distractions from academic work are more apparent.
When young adults get on these social networking sites they see the good, the bad and
the ugly. The possibility of seeing an argument between two mutual friends could arise, and then
the one person being an innocent bystander gets drawn into the middle of the feud. This alone
could cause a huge amount of stress on the individual which in the end can be extremely
detrimental for a person’s health especially for those who are still growing mentally and
physically (“Pros and Cons” 3). A recent study that was done at UCLA revealed that people who
used these social networking sites had an increase in “brain disorders”; loneliness, depression,
and basically anything that had to do with feelings and emotions (“Pros and Cons” 4) Trends in
teen behavior surrounding social networking have both positive and negative outcomes.
A study was done across 25 European countries about teens from the ages of 6-17 years
old and how much they used the internet. In 2010 the percent increased to about 90 percent
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
5
within the past five years (Davidson and Martellozzo, 2). This shows that the newer and more
advanced technology gets, the more that teens will use and possibly abuse it. In today’s society,
the younger generation does not have an understanding of the online and offline world (Davidson
and Marellozzo, 3). According to Davidson and Marellozzo, social networking sites advantages
greatly overpower the disadvantages (5). However, when it comes to these social networking
sites the only thing we tend to hear about are the bad things that happen because of the news. The
news usually focuses more on the negative things that happen on social networking sites so much
that it is starting to take always from the good that it does. Instead of hearing about how students
use these sites for academic benefits, we tend to hear about predatory pedophiles (Davidson and
Marellozzo, 6).
As made apparent in this article and from anyone who has one of these social networking
sites, there is a risk the youth is taking when creating these profiles. The main worry that most
parents have about with their children being on these sites is cyber bullying and harassment. It is
one thing to be harassed in person because you can identify them, but over the internet,
somebody could be using a fake profile so they do not get in trouble for what they are doing.
This online harassment can lead to serious harm of others and the individual (Davidson and
Marellozzo, 6). All of these things that happen over the internet can make the victim vulnerable
to things that go on in daily life setting. It can mess with them mentally, physically, and
emotionally which then creates a problem for public health care; violence and injury.
The two studies that were done, were on younger people and how their interaction with
social media site and what types of behaviors there are which then could be categorized as “high
risk” behavior such as sharing personal information with strangers or on a positive side getting to
meet new people ( Davidson and Marellozzo, 7). When it comes to older students, they would
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
6
not have a problem meeting up with someone in person that they met over the internet (Davidson
and Marellozzo, 7). As these studies are conducted based on the ages of adolescence that use
social networking sties, the results showed that most feel comfortable sharing their information
with only their “friends”. The problem with that is what these kids consider being “friends”—
people on their facebook who can already see their basic information (Davidson and Marellozzo,
7).
Most teenagers will go around bragging about how many friends they have on facebook
or who follows them on twitter because it makes their self-esteem go up. A TV comedian, Louis
CK made a statement saying that he was apprehensive about giving his daughters cellphones
because he was nervous they wouldn’t develop empathy (Thompson, 1). According to Susan
Greenfield, who is a writer and a scientist says that, “We could be raising a hedonistic generation
who live only in the thrill of the computer-generated moment and are in distinct danger of
detaching themselves from what the rest of us would consider the real world” along with other
studies revealing the same assumption (Thompson, 2).Though the fear of children acting out of
character because of something they saw on social networking sites may not be completely
accurate, the trend of teens online chatting, texting, and facebooking is.
The older generation frequently stereotypes the younger generation one that is heavily
technologically dependent. Research has confirmed that 31 percent of teens rarely text message
in a day, sending maybe 20 total messages, while about 20 percent send more than 200 texts a
day (Thompson, 3). As a result, teens do not spend as much time texting as the older generation
may perceive.
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
7
These fears of adults for the younger generation have not just surfaced, but have been
evolving since the 1930s when the radio became popular or in the 80s when the first walkman
came out and claims had been made saying that it “throbs with orgasmic rhythms” (Thompson,
3). The continuous creation of new technology harbors a risk of it provoking society. According
to Amanda Lenhart, a researcher of the Pew Research Center found that the teens who texts more
are the ones who spend more time with friends in person too. Also, she suggests that as teens
mature they lean more towards experiencing their freedom rather than occupying their time on
social networking sites (Thompson, 4).
The knowledge that has come forward about the affects of social networking sites on a
teen’s interaction with society is brutal and rewarding, but the affects it had on a teens level on
intelligence also comes forward. According to Baroness Susan Greenfield, a neuroscientist at
Oxford University says the bright lights and buzzing noises are regressing the brains growth by
assuming it is a small child again (Raise Smart Kids, 1). Because the brain does not have to focus
on anything other than lights and noises, it results in decreasing the attention span for the brain
(Raise Smart Kids, 1). These social networking sites affect the way that teens interact on a
communication level as well as an individual level too. For example, if a teens spends a lot of
time on facebook, where they have their own page, own pictures, and own post/ thoughts, they
assume that everything is about them, then causing problems later in life even the possibility of
being incapable to empathize (Raise Smart Kids, 2).
The American Academy of Pediatrics has formulated this idea of feeling that teens suffer
from a syndrome called “facebook depression”. If a teen has not been on social networking sites,
including facebook, they will become more irritable, moody, and suffer from depression because
they notice their friends are experiencing greater things than they are (Raise Smart Kids, 2). On
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
8
social networking sites there are no rules, no grammar checks, no spell check, or anything of that
nature, therefore, teens will find it harder to communicate in both verbal and nonverbal context
(Raise Smart Kids, 3). Between the ages of 14-21, teens are at a vulnerable stage in their life; this
is also when they express themselves though social networking sites more. In an journal PLOS
ONE, new research has found that teens who thought about self- harm or those who already
have, were more likely to engage on social networking sites and were victims of cyberbullying
(Raise Smart Kids, 4).
In Readers Digest, an article was written referring to social media effects on the brain,
one stating that people who use social media are less capable to think independently because
they are more focused on their peers’ opinions (Beres, 1). Also, social networking sites impact
individual’s health because of “food porn”; which activates a part of the brain that can cause a
person to over eat due to reward center of the brain (Beres, 1).
The importance of social networking sites have become misconstrued over the last couple
of years. The misuse and abuse of these social networking sites are what is constructing the
younger generation. Studies revealed that teens “needed” to interact through social networking
sites as a relief rather than “wanting” to connect with other which is what its original intention
are or use them as an escape goat rather than facing the problem head on, face to face. Social
networking sites have become more of a problem than useful. These websites have a negative
effect on the way individuals grow throughout their life on a social, intellectual, mental, and
physical level. The young generation will lack the ability to have intellectual conversations,
decrease brain growth, and lacks the positive growth of self confidence one needs to progress in
life.
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
9
References
Davidson, Julia. Martellozzo, Elena. “Exploring Young Peoples Use of Social Networking Sites
and Digital Media in the Internet Safety Context.” Information, Communication, and
Society. Vol. 16 Issue 9, p1456-1476, 21p. Nov2013
n.p. ProCon.org. Social Networking. 12 March 2014. Web 16 March 2014
http://socialnetworking.procon.org/
Raise Smart Kid. Facebook, Twitter, Social Networking Good or Bad for Kid’s Brain? n.d.
http://www.raisesmartkid.com/10-to-16-years-old/6-articles/43-facebook-myspacetwitter-good-or-bad-for-kids-brain
Readers Digest. 5 Weird Negative Effects of Social Media on your Brain. N.d.
http://www.rd.com/slideshows/negative-effects-of-social-media/#slideshow=slide2
Thompson, Clive. Teenagers and Social Networking-It Might Actually be Good for Them.
TheGuardian. 4 October 2013.
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/oct/05/teensgood-for-them
social-networking-
1
COURSE TITLE: College Writing II
COURSE IDENTIFICATION: English 21011
INTRUCTOR: Joshua Diamond
COURSE COMPLETED: Spring 2014
ASSIGNMENT TITLE: Social Issue Analysis Paper
ASSIGNMENT PROJECT DESCRIPTION: The student must pick a topic
he/she finds interesting that has a two sided view (good/bad, positive/negative,
etc.) Give information on the topic and come to a decision at the end on which side
you agree with more. The paper must be 8-10 pages.
REFLECTION: I have included this paper in the portfolio because it was an
important and interesting topic that I chose to write about. What I think this piece
shows about me is my interest in social media and the type affects it may have on
the younger generation. If I had to chance to do this assignment again, I would try
to find more articles that were more geared to what younger kids thought about
social media and the affects THEY think it has on them, and then compare the two.
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
2
Are Social Networking Sites Having a Positive or Negative Affect on the Youths Well Being?
Kaylee McLaughlin
Kent State University
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
3
The younger generation is a very important aspect of life for the simple fact that they
shape what our world will become in 15, 20, even 30 years. As an older generation we know how
far technology has come, and where it is now. We now have huge social media websites such as
facebook, twitter, and instagram that have a major effect on society. The age groups that are most
impacted by social media websites are teens and adolescences. It has become apparent in the
current societal culture that social networking has beneficial and detrimental effects on teens.
Social networking allows people to keep in touch despite of distance separation. For
example, you can stay in touch with your family that may live far away via internet. Also, social
networking sites allow you to connect with not just relatives, but also reconnect with people from
the past. On the other hand, social networking sites are frequently outlets to cyber bulling and
online arguments which often lead to in person fights, and impersonation. All of these things
have an effect on the youth; good and bad.
Social networking sites are starting to overtake people’s actions and how they interact
with one another, especially in young adults. For most young adults, they tend to flock more
towards the internet and social networking sites for information instead of looking in a library,
watching the news, and reading the newspaper. On the contrary, young adults get on these social
networking sites and use them for the greater good. Facebook is a good example of a site that is
used to keep in contact with family members that they may not get to see often or friends that
they fell out of touch with (“Pros and Cons” 1). Social media has the ability to boost a persons’
confidence and possibly make them want to change their ways and improve the community.
There are blogs that are used as support groups for kids that may be going through a rough time
and just need friends to talk if they do not have anyone to talk to at home or at school (“Pros and
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
4
Cons” 6). These social networking sites have a way of uniting people that normally would not be
connected, and soon realize they actually have a lot in common.
However, when young adults use these sites, they tend to lose the ability to interact with
society on a face to face level (“Pros and Cons” 1). For example, they are unable to have a
conversation with someone in person because they are so used to having a screen in front of
them to show their facial expressions and vice versa. Also, it can have a negative effect on
younger children’s brains, giving them a high risk for ADHD (“Pros and Cons” 1). Studies have
shown that students who have used social networking sites while they were studying scored
about 20% lower than the average student that didn’t use social networking sites (“Pros and
Cons” 1). Because they have more access to surf the internet then when in a library setting,
distractions from academic work are more apparent.
When young adults get on these social networking sites they see the good, the bad and
the ugly. The possibility of seeing an argument between two mutual friends could arise, and then
the one person being an innocent bystander gets drawn into the middle of the feud. This alone
could cause a huge amount of stress on the individual which in the end can be extremely
detrimental for a person’s health especially for those who are still growing mentally and
physically (“Pros and Cons” 3). A recent study that was done at UCLA revealed that people who
used these social networking sites had an increase in “brain disorders”; loneliness, depression,
and basically anything that had to do with feelings and emotions (“Pros and Cons” 4) Trends in
teen behavior surrounding social networking have both positive and negative outcomes.
A study was done across 25 European countries about teens from the ages of 6-17 years
old and how much they used the internet. In 2010 the percent increased to about 90 percent
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
5
within the past five years (Davidson and Martellozzo, 2). This shows that the newer and more
advanced technology gets, the more that teens will use and possibly abuse it. In today’s society,
the younger generation does not have an understanding of the online and offline world (Davidson
and Marellozzo, 3). According to Davidson and Marellozzo, social networking sites advantages
greatly overpower the disadvantages (5). However, when it comes to these social networking
sites the only thing we tend to hear about are the bad things that happen because of the news. The
news usually focuses more on the negative things that happen on social networking sites so much
that it is starting to take always from the good that it does. Instead of hearing about how students
use these sites for academic benefits, we tend to hear about predatory pedophiles (Davidson and
Marellozzo, 6).
As made apparent in this article and from anyone who has one of these social networking
sites, there is a risk the youth is taking when creating these profiles. The main worry that most
parents have about with their children being on these sites is cyber bullying and harassment. It is
one thing to be harassed in person because you can identify them, but over the internet,
somebody could be using a fake profile so they do not get in trouble for what they are doing.
This online harassment can lead to serious harm of others and the individual (Davidson and
Marellozzo, 6). All of these things that happen over the internet can make the victim vulnerable
to things that go on in daily life setting. It can mess with them mentally, physically, and
emotionally which then creates a problem for public health care; violence and injury.
The two studies that were done, were on younger people and how their interaction with
social media site and what types of behaviors there are which then could be categorized as “high
risk” behavior such as sharing personal information with strangers or on a positive side getting to
meet new people ( Davidson and Marellozzo, 7). When it comes to older students, they would
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
6
not have a problem meeting up with someone in person that they met over the internet (Davidson
and Marellozzo, 7). As these studies are conducted based on the ages of adolescence that use
social networking sties, the results showed that most feel comfortable sharing their information
with only their “friends”. The problem with that is what these kids consider being “friends”—
people on their facebook who can already see their basic information (Davidson and Marellozzo,
7).
Most teenagers will go around bragging about how many friends they have on facebook
or who follows them on twitter because it makes their self-esteem go up. A TV comedian, Louis
CK made a statement saying that he was apprehensive about giving his daughters cellphones
because he was nervous they wouldn’t develop empathy (Thompson, 1). According to Susan
Greenfield, who is a writer and a scientist says that, “We could be raising a hedonistic generation
who live only in the thrill of the computer-generated moment and are in distinct danger of
detaching themselves from what the rest of us would consider the real world” along with other
studies revealing the same assumption (Thompson, 2).Though the fear of children acting out of
character because of something they saw on social networking sites may not be completely
accurate, the trend of teens online chatting, texting, and facebooking is.
The older generation frequently stereotypes the younger generation one that is heavily
technologically dependent. Research has confirmed that 31 percent of teens rarely text message
in a day, sending maybe 20 total messages, while about 20 percent send more than 200 texts a
day (Thompson, 3). As a result, teens do not spend as much time texting as the older generation
may perceive.
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
7
These fears of adults for the younger generation have not just surfaced, but have been
evolving since the 1930s when the radio became popular or in the 80s when the first walkman
came out and claims had been made saying that it “throbs with orgasmic rhythms” (Thompson,
3). The continuous creation of new technology harbors a risk of it provoking society. According
to Amanda Lenhart, a researcher of the Pew Research Center found that the teens who texts more
are the ones who spend more time with friends in person too. Also, she suggests that as teens
mature they lean more towards experiencing their freedom rather than occupying their time on
social networking sites (Thompson, 4).
The knowledge that has come forward about the affects of social networking sites on a
teen’s interaction with society is brutal and rewarding, but the affects it had on a teens level on
intelligence also comes forward. According to Baroness Susan Greenfield, a neuroscientist at
Oxford University says the bright lights and buzzing noises are regressing the brains growth by
assuming it is a small child again (Raise Smart Kids, 1). Because the brain does not have to focus
on anything other than lights and noises, it results in decreasing the attention span for the brain
(Raise Smart Kids, 1). These social networking sites affect the way that teens interact on a
communication level as well as an individual level too. For example, if a teens spends a lot of
time on facebook, where they have their own page, own pictures, and own post/ thoughts, they
assume that everything is about them, then causing problems later in life even the possibility of
being incapable to empathize (Raise Smart Kids, 2).
The American Academy of Pediatrics has formulated this idea of feeling that teens suffer
from a syndrome called “facebook depression”. If a teen has not been on social networking sites,
including facebook, they will become more irritable, moody, and suffer from depression because
they notice their friends are experiencing greater things than they are (Raise Smart Kids, 2). On
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
8
social networking sites there are no rules, no grammar checks, no spell check, or anything of that
nature, therefore, teens will find it harder to communicate in both verbal and nonverbal context
(Raise Smart Kids, 3). Between the ages of 14-21, teens are at a vulnerable stage in their life; this
is also when they express themselves though social networking sites more. In an journal PLOS
ONE, new research has found that teens who thought about self- harm or those who already
have, were more likely to engage on social networking sites and were victims of cyberbullying
(Raise Smart Kids, 4).
In Readers Digest, an article was written referring to social media effects on the brain,
one stating that people who use social media are less capable to think independently because
they are more focused on their peers’ opinions (Beres, 1). Also, social networking sites impact
individual’s health because of “food porn”; which activates a part of the brain that can cause a
person to over eat due to reward center of the brain (Beres, 1).
The importance of social networking sites have become misconstrued over the last couple
of years. The misuse and abuse of these social networking sites are what is constructing the
younger generation. Studies revealed that teens “needed” to interact through social networking
sites as a relief rather than “wanting” to connect with other which is what its original intention
are or use them as an escape goat rather than facing the problem head on, face to face. Social
networking sites have become more of a problem than useful. These websites have a negative
effect on the way individuals grow throughout their life on a social, intellectual, mental, and
physical level. The young generation will lack the ability to have intellectual conversations,
decrease brain growth, and lacks the positive growth of self confidence one needs to progress in
life.
SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
9
References
Davidson, Julia. Martellozzo, Elena. “Exploring Young Peoples Use of Social Networking Sites
and Digital Media in the Internet Safety Context.” Information, Communication, and
Society. Vol. 16 Issue 9, p1456-1476, 21p. Nov2013
n.p. ProCon.org. Social Networking. 12 March 2014. Web 16 March 2014
http://socialnetworking.procon.org/
Raise Smart Kid. Facebook, Twitter, Social Networking Good or Bad for Kid’s Brain? n.d.
http://www.raisesmartkid.com/10-to-16-years-old/6-articles/43-facebook-myspacetwitter-good-or-bad-for-kids-brain
Readers Digest. 5 Weird Negative Effects of Social Media on your Brain. N.d.
http://www.rd.com/slideshows/negative-effects-of-social-media/#slideshow=slide2
Thompson, Clive. Teenagers and Social Networking-It Might Actually be Good for Them.
TheGuardian. 4 October 2013.
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/oct/05/teensgood-for-them
social-networking-
