Research dossiers and news reports have linked teens’ use of social media to mental health problems. An independent school made headlines by asking parents and students to sign a “contract” banning phone use on the road, during meals, and at night (Frazer-Carroll). In adolescence, when status and popularity are so important, comparison with other people’s lives is often associated with a bad mood. The new trial aims to alleviate schoolchildren’s anxieties by teaching them life skills. Apps like Instagram are causing heightened concerns about “oversight” and body image.
When a child is bullied at school, social media means bullying can continue late into the night. A quarter of young people with emotional and behavioral difficulties have parents with mental health problems, so it is not surprising that statistics on adolescents will follow suit (Frazer-Carroll). For teenagers, the Internet can become a place to find like-minded people, especially for those who find it difficult to communicate. The fact that smartphones and everything connected with them can both enrich and harm mental health is not a contradiction (Frazer-Carroll). But the sweeping bans proposed last week only serve to further demonize social media, not to start a conversation about how best to interact with it.
The article concludes with The Guardian’s statement that the publication cherishes much of what the United States cherishes – democracy, civility, and truth. It can be said that over the past three years, much of what The Guardian holds dear has come under threat (Frazer-Carroll). The country, according to the author of the article, is at a crossroads (Frazer-Carroll). Science battles hunches and instincts to guide policy in the midst of a pandemic. At the same time, the US is reckoning with centuries of racial injustice as the White House stokes racial divisions.
Work Cited
Frazer-Carroll, Micha. “Don’t Demonise Social Media, It Can Be a Blessing for Teens with Problems.” The Guardian, Web.