Negative Effects Of Technology On Teenagers

    (Introduction) “Put down the phone, turn off your the laptop, and do something-anything-that doesn’t involve a screen” (Twenge 63). It is astonishing the amount of time teens spend on phones. Jean Twenge discusses the effects smartphone usage has created among the younger and past generations in the article, “Has the Smartphone Destroyed a Generation”. The purpose of Twenge’s article is to aware readers about the many consequences the smartphone usage has impacted generations.

In “Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?” , Jean Twenge presents the negative impact smartphones have had in this generation. According to her, the rise of technology has shifted the way teens live and interact with other people, ultimately leading to self-destruction. Twenge’s thesis is supported by statistics that may or may not be completely linked to the use of smartphones.

Twenge argues that as a result of the introduction of the iPhone, today’s teenagers are safer since they stay at home more often, and thus are less independent and radical than the teenagers of the past few decades. She endorses this argument with statistics that suggest that this generation of adolescents is less social, as seen in decreased dating, sexual activity, and teenage birthrate trends. She provides readers with the fact that “…only about 56 percent of high-school seniors in 2015 went out on dates; for Boomers and Gen Xers, the number was about 85 percent.” However, Twenge overlooks the fact that there are new risks to the safety of teenagers; there are many online predators masquerading themselves to lure teenagers and these teenagers have also become less worldly-wise. She only discusses statistics that work for her argument and does not consider other implications that the introduction of the smartphone has instigated. Thus, her argument is insufficient since she does not consider other aspects of adolescents’ safety. Moreover, Twenge is repetitive in her emphasis on the rates of unhappiness and depression in youth that result from using smartphones. Nevertheless, she conversely supplies only one study to support these claims: The Monitoring the Future survey is a long-term question-based study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Using this study as her only piece of evidence does not effectively support her argument since this survey is funded for the purpose of studying drug abuse and it is unclear whether it is focused only on this purpose or on other aspects of teenagers’ lives. To strengthen her analysis, she must warrant her claim with additional data from studies that approach the problem in different ways. Furthermore, Twenge claims that the smartphone has resulted in

In the article, “Has the Smartphone Destroyed a Generation,” Jean M. Twenge uses rhetorical devices and appeals to build her credibility on how smartphones are destroying this generation's teenagers. The author presents several pieces of evidence to prove she’s correct, and shows how teenagers of this generation think and behave differently than their predecessors.

Within the decade, people can agree that technology has gradually impacted lives every day. Whether people believe it is progressive or destructive, it is established that for some, the impact of technology is quite concerning. An ongoing topic is whether teenagers are in fact addicted to their smartphone devices and social media. In Sherry Turkle's’ piece “Growing up Tethered” she provides student testimonials that only proves that teenagers from the ages sixteen to eighteen feel the need to be on their smartphones at all times. Although, technology does have positive outcomes and uses, Turkles’ points that teenagers are too tethered to their devices and are not as safe while using their device is correct because society is able to recognize

Ever since smartphones were created, they have changed teenagers’ lives entirely. The article Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation? by Jean Twenge, shows the ways the invention of the smartphone has changed recent generations. The article mentions the rise in teen depression and suicide, cyberbullying, and teen safety. It also mentions the decline in our social abilities, dating, and sleep. Smartphones have had both negative and positive affects on teenagers, but the negatives significantly outweigh the positives, which points to the need to put down the smartphones, as the article suggests.

“Put down the phone, turn off the laptop, and do something-anything-that doesn’t involve a screen” (Twenge 63). It is astonishing the amount of time teens spend on phones. Jean Twenge discusses the negative effects smartphone usage has created among the young and past generations in the article, “Has the Smartphone Destroyed a Generation”. The purpose of Twenge’s article is to aware readers about the many issues the smartphone usage has created on generations. Twenge narrates different stories about young teen’s experiences with phones and social media. Twenge also provides readers with statistics and some studies of many effects caused by smartphones. Twenge gives emphasize to differences between generations. According to Twenge, today’s

Smartphones are at the hands of over millions of people and many of them will never know life without smart phones. The article “Have smartphones destroyed a generation” by Jean M. Twenge is about “iGen” a generation which the author describes as “a generation shaped by the smartphone and by the concomitant rise of social media” (Twenge). Jean M. Twenge is a professor of psychology at San Diego State University and contributed in researching generational differences for 25 years. Twenge is claiming smartphones have completely uttered the lives of teenagers. Twenge argues in the article, “Have smartphones destroyed a generation” that teenagers in the generation “iGen” has been shifted for the worst. Teenagers today are less likely to be independent; for instance, teens are less likely to date or find employment. Furthermore, teenagers are more likely to face depression, along with suicide and cyberbullying. Finally, teens have fewer social interaction making them lonely and not spending time enough with family.

“Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?” by Jean M. Twenge on The Atlantic in September 2017 are changing people generation by generation. Twenge's thesis is that smartphones are changing the way teens act. Twenge is comparing baby boomers when they were teens to teens now. Teens now are shaped by phones. Smartphones are affecting teens by changing their personality and the way they look at themselves. She is stating that because of smartphones, teens are becoming disconnected from the outside world. In addition, smartphones are making teens less social and less independent. Also, another effect with smartphones is that they are making teens depressed and suicidal. In 2012, 50% of people had smartphones after 2012, is when suicidal and depression rate kept rising. The only good things Twenge states about smartphones, is that teens are more safe now. If there is an emergency, they can immediately contact someone. Furthermore, teens now have more individualism than millennials did. Twenge interviews a “13-year-old” girl and pulls her audience in by telling the girls story with phones. Twenge pulls back to the question, “Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?”. Teens today do not see the bad affects a smartphone has on them. They are too attached to their phones and also blinded to see it from another person's perspective.

Sherry Turkle shows her disapproval for the dependency that teenagers have with their phones in “Growing Up Tethered”. People have become too involved in the internet world, and it could end up hurting them.

In the article “Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?,” Twenge discusses the negative effects of smartphones and social media on today’s teenagers. She delves into a case study citing examples from a girl she refers to as Athena, who gives Twenge insight into this generation of teens. Twenge suggests that smartphones have become the main cause of increased depression and suicide rates for teenagers. Ever since 2012, with a majority of Americans owning smartphones has led to both the levels of happiness and independence to decrease.

Everywhere you go teens seem to be glued to their phones, tablets, or computers. Technology is an addiction that does not seem to be going away any time soon. According to the Washington Post, teens can spend up to seven or more hours on their digital devices a day and the usage is still increasing. Not surprisingly enough, more than a third of all teenagers own a cellphone, ranging from a smart phone or just a plain old-school flip phone. But can spending all that time on their computers and smart devices be such a bad thing? Today’s easy access, always on world presents a wealth of opportunity for teens as students, but also challenges them to retain them essential humanity and unique personalities.

Teens are spending more than one-third of their days using media — nearly nine hours on average, according to a new study from the family technology education nonprofit group, Common Sense Media. Even more than sleeping!

Adolescents are currently in an era where the ubiquity of technology has made it easier to connect to other from all regions of the globe. The innovation of technology does not come without its issues. The current problem is how adolescents have turned to using technology to communicate and sacrificing face-to-face social skills. Studies have found that the ownership and access to devices among adolescents are on the rise (Jonsson et al., 2014; Lenhart et al., 2010; Lenhart et al., 2007; Lenhart, 2015; Madden et al., 2013; Mander, 2015; Mander & McGrath,2014). Additionally, the results of device ownership and access have also lead to an increase in electronic consumption, where 92% of teens report going online daily (Lenhart, 2015).

How is technology impacting teens’ mental health? It’s no secret that technology is a necessity nowadays, and the popularity and dependency is only growing. This is especially seen in teenagers. The question we need to ask ourselves is how is this dependency affecting our health and overall well being? Teens need about 9.5 hours of sleep a night. However, less than 20% of teenagers actually achieve this, according to a poll from the National Sleep Foundation from 2006. Due to the immense growth in popularity of technology, it can be assumed that this number has fallen in the last 11 years. Sleep deprivation can make people more irritable, tired, and susceptible to illness. Teens feel pressured to be reachable 24/7, and therefore stay up later in order to be able to talk, play games, watch videos or