For several years now, my research activity has been accompanied by sharing not only in academic-scientific contexts, but also in schools and associations, meeting with students, teachers, and parents. Knowing and investigating allows us to understand which direction to take. Investigating the universe of children and adolescents cannot be carried out from an isolated and distant observatory, it needs confrontation.
Adults have the task of listening to children, preadolescents and adolescents. New technologies play an important role in social evolution, and teens must be properly guided in discovering new virtual worlds.
We have moved from cell phones to smartphones, and in every smartphone so many applications are downloaded including social media platforms.
The development of apps and applications is introducing unstated rules that lead individuals to act oriented and “driven” by technology, or rather by its developers.
The data I have collected in my research shows that for young people there is no longer a distinction between online and offline. Online pre-teens and teenagers now “window-dress” every moment of their lives and want to look perfect.
One of the most concern-inducing socials today is TikTok, the most talked about platform of the moment. Unlike other socials, such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat that have always been an endless mine of personal data, the Chinese platform has, many, too many dark sides in the thriving world of the app economy.
I was struck by an article, recently published in Vanityfair.co.uk, explaining the relationship between the Alpha Generation and social networks.
Generation Alpha includes all those born after 2010. These children are between 13 and 14 years old and access, although they are not the minimum age set in Italy, social networks.
The report Imagining Another Self – Exploring the Online Habits of the Alpha Generation, conducted by the Department of Human, Social and Health Sciences at the University of Cassino and Lazio Meridionale and coordinated by Simone Digennaro – PhD, Associate Professor in Pedagogy and Professional Educator, highlights some interesting data that confirm my research.
“Participating in the 12-month study were 959 boys and girls between the ages of 10 and 14, with an average age of 12, 50% of whom were females. Of the total, 99 percent use instant messaging apps while 88 percent use social networks.”
The research indicates that: “There are 5 platforms used on average, with the value tending to increase with age. TikTok turns out to be the most used social network, with 76.74% of respondents, followed by Instagram with 69.86% and Pinterest with 43.37%. But if we include YouTube in the list, Google’s platform rises to the top of the list, with a usage rate of 86 percent. Among messaging apps, WhatsApp is the most used, with 95.72% of respondents using it, followed by Telegram (25.23%). Other socials used, but to a lesser extent, are Twitch (30.03%), Snapchat (29.92%), BeReal (29.61%), Discord (19.7%), X (12.09%), and Facebook (11.15%).” The data emphasize that still “parents’ control over their children’s online activities is partial.”
The Survey I conducted, and published within my book “Children of Apps,” took a snapshot of what is happening. The technological revolution is now complete. Teenagers move between apps and social dimensions in a daily h24 flow of interactions, content production and creativity. 100% of respondents own a smartphone and 99% of teens said they have a social profile.
Indeed, it seems approximate to speak of a generic social profile, because in reality young people use different social media depending on their communication goals and target audiences. And the responses confirm that Instagram and Whatsapp are their favorite places, the realm of image the former, the empire of immediacy the latter. Certainly, the topic of the relationship between new generations and technology has always posed a twofold question: to understand how communication tools can contribute to the education process of the new generations and what consequences result from their entering so pervasively into their lives. It is clear that social media are the relational universe par excellence for young people and there is an urgent need to protect childhood. Each of us has a responsibility to help outline paths and tools that accompany the growth of children and help them rediscover values and feelings.
The article Generation Alpha, 90 percent use social networks comes from TheNewyorker.
