Today 's Youth And Technology

Every generation experiences an event or societal change that influences adolescence. Technology, specifically cellular devices, have revolutionized the culture of dating and relationships. Sexting, by definition is sending someone sexually explicit photographs or messages via cell phone, has become the new normal for adolescents. More importantly, teen girls experience the pressure and repercussions of sexting. Whether a girl choses to do so or not, she is ridiculed for either being a “slut” or a “prude” amongst her peers. Our society projects women as sexual objects through images, films, and videos in media which teaches young female consumers to objectify themselves in order to capture the male gaze. Because our society is sexualized, it is no surprise that sexting has become part of dating and the gender script. The issues with sexting, particularly with adolescents females, is that it teaches them to sexually objectify themselves in order to win the boy and keep him interested. Unfortunately, if those explicit images circulate amongst other people, the girl gets bullied and slut-shamed.

Increasingly, there is a large dependence on technology today as opposed to ten or twenty years ago. Technology has changed a lot of how life is lived today. It affects shopping, job seeking employment opportunities, entertainment and academics. There is no doubt that technology has set its foundation and is here to stay. One area in which the effects of technology can be clearly noted is in the lifestyle of children. The addiction to technology by children today has increased over the years. This is clearly seen in the developmental progress of children today. This dependence has greatly influenced how children

Technology has advanced a lot within the last couple of years. It definitely has its pros and cons when it comes to how it affects our personal lives. Some people may take this to an extreme and become very dependable on their technological devices. There is a large gap between the generations of when all there was, was pen and paper and now where we see even 6-year-olds with the latest iPhone. In “What’s the Matter with Kids Today” by Amy Goldwasser, the author explains how different life was without technology and how it's so commonly used now.

Bullying has become a major issue in the United States and around the world. What brought the attention to people about bullying is the number of suicides that are committed by adolescents and the stories they share online or live television. Bullying is categorized to be direct verbal, direct physical, and indirect forms. Not every person has an idea how terrible bullying can be and how harmful it is to the victim. Bullying has driven students to commit actions they have never done before such as cutting themselves, suicidal thoughts, health disorders, and bad behavior. Bullying must be taken seriously, because it results in negative effects on its victims and may drive students to commit horrific actions. Lawmakers should draft anti-bullying legislation, students should stand up for one another, and society should work out what can be done to combat this problem.

Cyber-bullying is a very well-known, yet untouched issue that thrives within the age of technology. As it remains untouched and "acknowledged" by the striving online communities, negative cyberspace behavior increases. It gets to the point where this behavior is so frequent, there had been instances of a victim's suicide, supposedly caused by people on the Internet, who are classed as cyber-bullies. Cyber-bullies should be held criminally responsible for a victim's suicide because they are breaking the law, using the web to their advantage, and if they are not held criminally responsible, chances are that the problem will continue.

One specific phenomenon that has emerged with the increase of smart phones and personal technology is the issue of sexting; the sharing or exchange of sexual messages or images (thesocietypages). As the deviant act of youth sexting is more common than parents might realize or want to admit (CNN), Kelly Wallace investigates how youth’s sexual behavior has become normalized through the act of sexting. The article, “Is Your Teen Using Apps to Keep Secrets?” explores how much of today’s youth share sexually explicit messages through the tech savvy world.

Sexting – teens sending sexually explicit photos of themselves via cell phones, email, or instand message – has become the latest in a line of highly charged issues involving kids and the internet. Sexting has become a widespread occurance that has destroyed lives and has caused emotional distress to many teenagers and young adults. Sexting gives teenagers the feeling of acceptance and the chance to be popular by gaining attention but what they fail to realize is the attention they are receiving is negative and it affects their reputation. Once a sext message has been sent, the receiver is given the opportunity to show the message to his or her peers and which will bring negative attention to the sender. Teenager’s sext for

Kids today have so much access with just the use of one handheld device. With all the options of video apps, picture apps, and texting apps, sexting has become a very popular act today. Sexting has been around for years and years, but why has it become so popular? Is it because more and more kids have phones? Or is it because parents don’t have as much control over what their children can and cannot look up through their phones. An analysis on today’s teenagers shows that sexting has become a huge problem with teenagers today all because of the improvement of electronics.

Michael M. Honda states that “everyone in America likely has a bullying story, whether as a victim, bully, or as a witness.” Cyberbullying has become a major epidemic in the modern day world because everyone has access to the internet in some way. By taking an in depth look at cyberbullying, one can see just how urgent it is to stop it, because not only can it strike anywhere at any time, cyberbullying can also lead to suicide and cause serious mental health issues.

In the article, “If Suicide Happens… Questions Raised on Bullying as Cause” Gail states, “The bullying may reinforce negative images the person already has of him or herself, and plays into their sense of reality.”(Gail). Being mistreated by others can change your perspective of yourself. When other individuals say appalling things about another, those comments by others build up and become too much to deal with. When it becomes to much, the teenager can only see one way out and that is suicide. In the article “Should schools punish cyberbullies?” Kaitlin Menza states, “Yes. Being bullied online makes school unbreakable.”(Menza). Being bullied online makes going to school an even more difficult to get through than it already is. showing up at school after being bullied online can make matters worse. People that were being bullied online are now being bullied at school and this can mess up one's focus in class and extracurricular activities. Although bullying is tough at school, the Government can resolve this issue with a law that will help many

A real social danger with sexting is that since all the material send out is digital that person has the same permission you do with that photo. The report by psychologist Raychelle C. Lohmann highlights the risk of severe depression for sexters who lose control of their images and videos. In a study conducted by analyzing sexting behaviors among young adults, it was found that “men would show the sexually-explicit photos of their girlfriends to their friends. (Lohmann)” this is a risk associated with new media, prior to cell phones and email, it would be difficult to quickly distribute photos to acquaintances; with sexting, one can forward a photo in a matter of seconds. The most important negative effect of sexting forms mental health issues. Having your private pictures shared with a mass audience can cause vast “guilt and shame” (Lohmann). As a result, kids who participate in sexting often regret having done so. It also impacts self-esteem leaving them feeling vulnerable and exposed. In addition, “adolescents with sexting could not focus on their studies thus they would lose their academic future.” Students who partaken in sexting tend to skip their classes and cut school (Lohmann). Moreover, sexting is linked to depression, anxiety and an impaired ability to express emotions which could lead to suicide. For example, in “Ohio, Jessica Logan, eighteen years old, decided to

The current generation of children is completely different than the preceding ones. They are living in the digital age. “Technology has blended in with daily activity to become a way of life and children today take for granted all of which is automated. It is hard for kids nowadays to imagine a world that existed without all of the gadgets, electronics and seamless operations that computer technology provides.” (3) “Children in the United States devote some 40 hours a week to television, video games and the Internet.” (12) Many psychologists and researchers are concerned about the impact that technology has on children. Children, tomorrow’s future parents and leaders, are being consumed by the negative effects that technology had on their

According to The Impact of Social Media on Children, Adolescents, and Families, a clinical report, Sexting is defined as sending, receiving or forwarding sexually explicit messages, photographs or images via cell phone, computer or other digital devices. A national survey by the National Campaign to Support Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy and CosmoGirl.com found a surprising 20 percent of teens from ages 14-18 have participated in sexting. Though both genders seem to be sending sexually explicit or vulgar messages, 71% of teenage girls are more probable to send inappropriate photos of themselves, particularly to their boyfriends compared to teenage boys who only do it 67% of the time. However, this is not the worst part. 36% of teenage girls

Cell phones are common objects found in the pockets and bags of almost everyone one in the world. Recently, cell phones have been getting teens and adults into trouble. Most individuals send and receive text messages. The newest trend among some individuals is “sex-texting” or “sexting.” Sexting is a dangerous yet contagious phenomenon contaminating the lives of teens and adults all over the country, if not the world. This phenomenon can have serious consequences. Even after surveying 1300 teenagers, one in five say they’ve sexted, although they know that it could be a crime (Feyerick and Steffen). Sexting is a growing epidemic and the only way to prohibit its growth is to develop close relationships with the kids of today’s

There is no doubt that technology has advanced tremendously in the last half-century. Technology has provided extraordinary improvements to our world; being an endless source of entertainment and nonstop communication anywhere at any time. But are these technological advancements a good thing? The youth of today are constantly immersed in these technological advancements whether through cell phones, gaming systems, or laptops. As technology continues to advance it is negatively affecting our health, communication skills, and the education of youth.