Everybody, especially the youth, including me and most likely you, loves their technology and phones, using them for hours, watching YouTube, TikTok, or maybe playing a game. It allows youth to have fun, make new friends, and learn new skills or build on learned ones. Though when youth use social media and play games extensively without being monitored, the effects of it start going downhill. And not enough people talk or help with this issue. So that is why I’m here to explain to you the effects of unregulated and unmonitored social media and gaming use on the youth. Social media and gaming have been an everlasting part of the youth’s daily life, and they love it. However, social media and gaming are extremely dangerous for them if not regulated and monitored. If not regulated and monitored, social media and gaming can cause everlasting detriments for youth as young as five. Youth of this era need to be successful in the future, and extended social media use and gaming are among the many problems that block this success. Social media has also stagnated my success, making me gain weight, be less active, and even become more aggressive, and I would not want that for any other child. Studies and articles have shown that extended social media and gaming use can lead to an increased risk of mental health issues, psychological issues, health issues, laziness, and even more. However, this problem can be solved through individual and group action.
Youth, social media, and online gaming are not a good combo if used extensively. Youth use social media and play games extensively, which is not beneficial to their health and well-being. In fact, according to an article from the World Health Organization (WHO), “More than 1 in 10 adolescents (11%) showed signs of problematic social media behaviour, struggling to control their use and experiencing negative consequences.” Additionally, according to an advisory of the U.S. Surgeon, “Adolescents who spent more than 3 hours per day on social media faced double the risk of experiencing poor mental health outcomes, including symptoms of depression and anxiety.” If adolescents who spend more than 3 hours on social media have a higher chance of depression and anxiety, then those who spend even more will have even worse symptoms.
Furthermore, according to an article from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, due to the little to no regulation on these games and media, approximately 500,000 or more predators are able to talk to minors with no repercussions. Along with this, due to the little to no regulation on these games and apps, strangers are able to say whatever they want to these youth and manipulate them, while also allowing youth to go on inappropriate websites and apps with a simple click of a button, leading to an increased risk of these minors being groomed and committing suicide. Thus, social media should be used with caution, because it could bring forth an increased risk of depression, anxiety, suicide, and even worse stuff. However, social media and gaming do not need to be completely stopped for youth, as long as people and groups can help with these issues, then the negative effects of social media and gaming can be negated, while the positive effects stay. These problems can be solved with enough external action from others, allowing youth to still enjoy their social media and games without repercussions. So now let me tell you how people can help with this issue.
Social media can be detrimental to our youth, even going as far as indirectly leading to their death, and not enough people are talking about it or helping to stop it. Parents and guardians of youth and the tech companies making these games and apps are to blame and need to take action to aid them. In fact, according to the article, “We Must Take Action a Way Forward, “parents/caregivers can,” “create a family media plan,” “create tech-free zones,” “model responsible social media behavior,” “work with others,” and “report cyberbullying.” On the other hand, tech companies can “adhere to and enforce age minimums,” “ensure default settings for children are set to highest safety and privacy standards,” “create effective and timely systems and processes to adjudicate requests and complaints from young people, families, educators, and others,” and “design, develop, and evaluate platforms, products, and tools that foster safe and healthy online environments for youth.” Both of these groups are able to perform these actions that will effectively aid the youth exponentially in their social media and online gaming behavior. By using these methods, parents are able to set boundaries and curfews for social media use and keep kids occupied and stimulated without relying on social media and online games, successfully stopping the effects of social media on their youth. By using these methods, tech companies are able to keep these youth happy and fulfilled, while not being in danger of any predators or bad people. This elucidates how parents and technology companies can support the youths’ social media behavior and time, by showing methods that they can use in order to stop or reverse the effects and keep the good ones, while keeping the youth safe, happy, and fulfilled. But, how does this help in the long run?
Ultimately, extended social media and online gaming use is a huge complication in the development of youth; it can indirectly kill them or even cause everlasting health or mental health issues. However, social media and online gaming do not need to be stopped or stripped away from the youth. It just needs to be regulated, monitored, and changed. These solutions I proposed enable social media and gaming to continue with minimal complications and issues. Allowing these youth to not only gain the positive effects of social media and gaming, but also to block the negative effects. Our future depends on the youth of this era, and they will one day have a part in shaping and reforming the world, so we need to make sure that they grow up to be the best they can possibly be. So not only do these solutions negate one problem, but they also indirectly develop the youth to be the best form of themselves they can be in the future. So now you know the effects of unregulated and unmonitored social media and online gaming on youth, and how you or others can help stop it, effectively making the future brighter and more worldly.
