Study Finds Social Media Use Enhances Offline Interactions Among Youth

Jakarta –

A study has dismissed concerns that social media can interfere with young people’s offline or real-life interactions. The study surveyed 800 people aged 10 to 18.

Researchers found that more social media use was associated with more socializing offline, not less. This counters concerns that digital interactions are replacing face-to-face communication, and instead suggests that digital interactions can supplement or even enhance interactions .

The study, which is part of the Trondheim Secure Early Study, also examined factors such as age, gender, quality of friendship and social anxiety.

Study Notes Social Skills Are at Some Risk

Researchers noted a slight risk of poorer social skills among teens who had high levels of social anxiety and social media use.

Parents are often concerned about social media use among children and teenagers. Taking care of this is a good thing and there are several reasons why you should take care of it.

However, based on this research, there is one thing that parents do not need to worry about, and that is that the younger generation that spends time on social media is not having problems interacting with friends where -line.

“In contrast, we found that people who frequently use social media spend more time with offline friends,” said Professor Silje Steinsbekk from the Department of Psychology at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology ( NTNU).

According to him, social media is a new area for social interaction, and some argue that the use of social media hinders the development of social skills, while others argue the opposite: social media can improve skills social development.

“We found no evidence to support any of these pieces of evidence,” he said.

He said it was important to know which people are most vulnerable to the use of social media problems and who could benefit from it.

Therefore, the researchers also investigated whether age, gender, quality of friendship, and symptoms of social anxiety played a role.

People with social anxiety can benefit from social media

Researchers found that children with social anxiety symptoms who frequently use social media are at risk of developing poorer social skills.

“This correlation is weak, so we are reluctant to make strong conclusions until more research is done to investigate this further,” Steinsbekk said.

Previous research suggests that people with social anxiety may feel less intimidated when communicating with others online than in real life. So these people are really benefiting from social media.

However, other research shows that they are also more prone to problems with the use of social media, such as an increased risk of addiction and intensive use.

“Social media is a new social landscape in which children and teenagers spend a lot of time, and we need to know the impact it has on them. In fact, they argue the opposite,” Steinsbekk said.

Children who spend more time using social media report spending several nights a week with offline friends.

Other research shows that using social media leads to greater intimacy, the development of new friendships, and the strengthening of old friendships. This may be an explanation for the findings of the current study.

“We hope that these findings will help reduce parents’ concerns. At the same time, it is important to emphasize the rapid development of technology, which makes research on the use of social media a challenge. It’s impossible to know if the results would be the same if we studied 10-year-olds today and followed them until they turn 18 in 2032,” said Steinsbekk.

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(nah/faz)