Internet harms teenagers more than it helps

Nobody can deny the important role of the Internet in our everyday life. People of all ages are using it to fi nd information and entertainment. They also access it for fi nancial services. Teens are no exception.

Obviously the Internet is a valuable tool but is somewhat misused by contemporary society. The main group that has been affected the most by technology in modern times is teenagers. Truly, the two main forms of technology affecting our teenagers are the phones and the Internet, which have brought significant variations to their lifestyle. Since most teens have access to the Internet, either at home, school, public library or on their phone, parents should be responsive to how its overuse or misuse can adversely affect their teenager.

The teenage period is often characterized by an unstable emotional state. During this period young people are shifting from being a child to being an adult person. In addition, a lot of young people try to establish their roles in the society and to understand their feelings and attitudes. Approximately 90 percent of all young people use online services. Teenagers visit the web sites of their favourite TV shows, singers, bands, movies, video games, etc.

Moreover, they are attracted to commercial sites, since these are designed in appealing bright colours in order to attract teenagers and involve them in interactive games. When teenagers spend numerous hours per day using the Internet, they reduce the time they have to spend with family, friends and on school work and physical activities.

According to Larry D. Rosen, PhD, professor of psychology at California State University, “Young adults with a strong Facebook presence show signs of antisocial behaviours, mania and aggressive tendencies. In addition, daily overuse of media and technology has a negative effect on children and teens, making them more prone to anxiety, depression and other psychological disorders.” The rising and extreme use of the internet among teenagers also is mostly influenced by the affordability and availability of the Internet both at school and at home. This continued use of the Internet by teenagers has tremendously affected youngsters over time.

To be specific, most teenagers who excessively use the Internet continue to have problems academically, socially and even morally. Teenagers who have an unhealthy dependence on the Internet are almost twice as likely to become depressed as other teens.

It has been established that children who occupy most of their time on the Internet show a weird kind of behavior which is marked by an urge to be online all the time, so much that the child may ignore all other activities and become immersed in the virtual world. Surveys conducted over the years have found that most people who suffer from Internet addiction disorder are young adults, who easily fall into the lure of exploring everything that is available on the Internet.

According to one of the reports in 2012 from the Pew Internet