Socially wired

By Amy Cynkar

Instant messaging and e-mail may dispel inhibitions and can lead to closer

friendships for children and teens. But how much is too much?

Parents planning to ground their teenagers at home for their latest antics might

want to consider dropping them off at the mall instead. Being away from the computer

may put quite a damper on their social life, according to new research suggesting that

teens who use the Internet to communicate may have better friendships than those who

don't.

Results released in April from a study by the Pew Research Center show that 89

percent of teens use the Internet at least once a week, and that 61 percent log on at least

daily. And private communications, such as instant messaging (IM) and e-mail, eat up

most of the time they spend online.

In fact, a 2005 Pew Center report on teens and technology shows that 75 percent

of all online teens--about two-thirds of teenagers overall--use IM, and that nearly half of

teens use it at least once every day.

But how is this popular mode of communication affecting the social development of

children and teens?

Most teens use the Internet to consolidate their existing social networks, not to

make new friends, says Patti M. Valkenburg, PhD, professor of child and media research

at the University of Amsterdam. And she says all this frequent online communication
may help young people develop more intimate friendships by allowing kids to let go of

inhibitions.

"The Internet exactly meets the needs of teens who would spend their entire day

chatting with friends if they could," Valkenburg says.

But this new online candor may also lead some teens--most often those with troubled

offline relationships--to make dangerous connections with strangers on the Internet, or

engage in online harassment, psychologists say.

And as Internet use continues to grow, teens may end up spending more time

cuddling up with a glowing computer screen than flirting at the mall, says developmental

psychologist Patricia Greenfield, PhD, a University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)

psychology professor and co-investigator of the Children's Digital Media Center, which

just completed five years of research funded by the National Science Foundation.

"As a species, we evolved for face-to-face communication," she says. "The

increase in mediated communication makes us freer, but also risks making our social

relations less personal and more fleeting."

Sticking close to home

Joe712: YT? WAYD? 

Steve34: OTP--what's your ETA? 

Joe712: 7pm 

Steve34: WFM--CUL8R
 This may look like a foreign language to some, but to nine out of 10 teenagers, it's

merely an IM conversation confirming offline plans between two friends. Here's the

conversation again, decoded:

Joe712: You there? What are you doing? 

Steve34: On the phone--what's your estimated time of arrival? 

Joe712: 7 p.m. 

Steve34: Works for me--see you later!

Such communication makes up the bulk of teens' online talk, as most kids stick to

chatting with friends from school, clubs or other offline social networks. The study shows

teens spent about an hour a day conversing online, often about school, friends and gossip,

says study author Elisheva F. Gross, PhD, who works with Greenfield at UCLA.

Valkenburg confirms these online teen social habits. The study polled 794 10- to 16-year-

olds at six elementary, middle and high schools in the Netherlands--where teens report

similar online habits as youth in the United States, Valkenburg says--and found that 88

percent "often" or "almost always" communicate online with pre-existing, offline friends.

The study also reports that respondents who communicated online more often felt closer

to their friends, she says.

The reason for this closeness may stem from another one of the study's findings--that

nearly one in three adolescents say they're better able to share intimate information about

themselves online than offline, especially when it comes to interacting with the opposite

sex. It seems that teens, especially those who may be socially anxious in face-to-face
situations, view the Internet as a relatively low-risk venue for disclosing personal

information. Since IM participants can't partake in any passive observations about their

IM partners, they're forced to ask more direct questions--questions that might be

considered rude in face-to-face settings, says Valkenburg. This, in turn, may stimulate

closer friendships she adds.

"[Teens] say they can better talk about secrets such as being in love or things they're

ashamed of on the Internet than in real-life situations," she says. That sort of "intimate

self-disclosure is a main determinant of the quality of friendships."

Dangerous connections

For some teens, however, rather than serving to further offline friendships, the

Internet leads to social isolation. More than 1,000 mental health professionals from 11

professional membership associations, including APA, completed a two-phase mail

survey examining the Internet-related problems most reported to them by clients. Cases

were categorized in an 11group inventory of problems, including overuse, risky or

inappropriate use, and sexual exploitation and abuse.

Participants classified 15 percent of youth clients described in the study as

engaging in isolative-avoidant use of the Internet. In essence, teens were spending so

much time on the Internet that they isolated themselves from family and friends, says

lead author Kimberly J. Mitchell, PhD, psychology professor at the Crimes against

Children Research Center (CCRC) at the University of New Hampshire.

 "The Internet was basically their sole means of socialization," she says.

And the same liberating function that often leads to higher-quality offline friendships for

most teens can also propel some to make dangerous connections with strangers. In fact,

32 percent of online teens reported that a stranger had contacted them, either through a

social networking site such as MySpace.com or other private communication venue or

chat room, according to the 2007 Pew study. More than 1,500 youth ages 10 to 17 reveals

that 25 percent have formed casual online friendships and 14 percent have formed close

online friendships or online romances.

Those at particular risk include teens who are highly troubled--with a history of

depression or physical or sexual victimization, for example--and those with high parent-

child conflict, says the study's lead author, Janis Wolak, JD, also with CCRC.

"These kids really are looking to escape from their environment," she says. "They may

not have a good network of family and friends to bounce things off to determine what's

appropriate [online] and what's not."

While some troubled teens may fall into unhealthy romantic relationships online,

others suffer from online harassment--ranging from relentless teasing to physical threats,

both from people they know offline and from those they meet online, says Mitchell. She

says the sheer magnitude of people who may see something posted online about a victim

of cyber-bullying sometimes makes it worse than face-to-face schoolyard taunting.

"[The Internet] takes the whole writing on the bathroom door [concept] to a completely

different perspective," Mitchell says.

For psychologists, the Internet may be just one aspect of adolescent social

development, but it's one that should be monitored closely as it continues to grow, says
Gross. What is for sure, however, is that the Internet adds a new dimension to many

psychological problems--addiction and social anxiety, for example--that existed well

before the Internet.

2004 Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology study (Vol. 25, No. 6, pages 633-

649).

2007 Developmental Psychology study (Vol. 43, No. 2, pages 267-277

2005 Professional Psychology: Research and Practicestudy (Vol. 36, No. 5, pages 498-
509)
2003 Journal of Adolescence study (Vol. 26, No. 1, pages 105-119)
A study of time use and academic achievement among secondary-school students in

the state of Kelantan, Malaysia

The preliminary report of the Malaysian Education Retrieved June 11, 2012
highlights the importance, in a globalised world, of producing future intellectual, social
and human capital for Malaysia. It is paramount to note that adolescents are the future
human capital of Malaysia.

Literature indicates adolescents are confronted with an environment that is rapidly

changing and the time spent on non-school-related activities has negatively impacted
academic performance. This research investigated the contribution of time use among
students to academic achievement. The sample of secondary school students was
stratified to ensure balance of gender, school type and grade level.

Correlation analyses were conducted to determine the associations among the

variables identified in the study. Participants completed the Daily Record of How I Use
My Time each day for seven consecutive days. Cooperating schools provided copies of
the academic transcript of each participant.

This information was used to establish the overall secondary school academic
achievement of each participant. The data collected were subjected to bivariate
comparison of means and t-test comparisons of means to yield correlations among the
target variables. The findings of this research support those of some previous studies and
contradict those of other studies, many conducted with non-Malaysian populations. In
sum, this study may help to develop a conceptual framework for guiding efforts to
improve academic performance, as it relates to time use, as a contribution to
accomplishing the national agenda of Malaysia.
Introduction

Today's youth are confronted with a media environment that is rapidly changing.
The time spent on media, whether for the purpose of school-related or non-school-related
learning, has influenced youths more than before. A study on Malaysian youths showed
that they spend about 32.6 hours per day on media-related activities such as watching
television (TV), surfing the Internet, listening to the radio and reading magazines: It's
time to unplug and play. New Straits Times, Retrieved June 10, 2013.

It is possible to exceed 24 hours per day of such activities because technology

allows us to multitask. One can talk on the phone, watch TV, check the Facebook account
and listen to music at the same time. However, research shows that out of the 32.6 hours,
more than 30%, or approximately 11 hours, is spent on media-related activities such as
surfing the Internet (3.3 hours), watching TV (2.5 hours) and using phones (1.3 hours).
On the use of computers for social networking, Malaysians are found to have the highest
number of Facebook friends, with an average of 233 in each account. Malaysians spend
9 h a week on Facebook, which is one of the highest compared with other countries, and
more than 10 million Malaysians are currently Facebook users.

A study of time use among Malaysian youths as it relates to school achievement,

particularly one that differentiates between school-related activities and non-school-
related activities, may provide insights into how these activities impact the performance
of youths in school. Such insights may be useful to educational policy-makers, school
administrators, teachers, civic groups, parents and adolescents concerned with optimising
the opportunities provided during the secondary school years of Malaysian children.

Objectives of the research

The objectives of this research are the following:

 To investigate the contribution of time use for school-related activities to
academic achievement among secondary school students in Malaysia.

 To investigate the contribution of time use for non-school-related activities to

academic achievement among secondary school students in Malaysia.

Research hypotheses

In order to assess the relationship between time use in school-related and non-school, and
leisure-related activities with academic achievement among secondary school students in
Malaysia, the following hypotheses are formulated:

 There is a negative and significant correlation between time spent watching TV

and academic achievement.

 There is a negative and significant correlation between time spent in activities

associated with Internet and academic achievement.

 There is a negative and significant correlation between time spent playing

multimedia games and social networks (video, Xbox, PlayStation, Facebook) and
academic achievement.

 There is a positive and significant correlation between time spent in reading

and academic achievement.

 There is a positive and significant correlation between time spent in studying

and academic achievement.

 There is a positive and significant correlation between time spent in tuition and
academic achievement.
 There is a positive and significant correlation between time spent in extra
curricular activities and academic achievement.

 There is a positive and significant correlation between time spent in homework

and academic achievement.

 There is a positive and significant correlation of time spent in activities

associated with school-related activities combined and academic achievement.

 There is a negative and significant correlation of time spent in activities

associated with non-school-related activities combined and academic achievement.

 Females achieve significantly higher CGPAs than males, Form 4 students

achieve significantly higher CGPAs than Form 2 students and elite school students
achieve significantly higher CGPAs than standard school students.

 Females, Form 4 and elite school students will spend significantly more time in
school-related activities than males, Form 2 and standard school students.

 Males, Form 2 and standard school students spend significantly more time in
non-school-related activities than females, Form 4 and elite school students.

Conclusion

Analyses of data collected in this study have revealed that in some important ways, the

time use activities of secondary school students in Malaysia have much in common with

adolescents from around the world. Yet, some of the findings of this study point to a need

for all concerned with maximising the educational opportunities of adolescents in

Malaysia to examine the relationships between time use patterns and academic

achievement.
Overall, non-school-related activities showed statistically significant negative

relationships with CGPA. This indicates that time spent on these activities has a negative

association with CGPA. Educational researchers should engage in further studies of time

use in school-related and non-school-related time use in order to better understand those

behaviours that enhance academic achievement and those that undermine it.

Educational planners, school administrators, teachers and parent teacher associations

should be encouraged to promulgate the findings of studies dealing with the impact of

time use on academic success to parents and adolescents. Parents and adolescents should

be encouraged to monitor individual time use and daily progress regarding completion of

study assignments and comprehension across the curricular spectrum. Such efforts may

well help parents and their children identify time use decisions that are facilitating good

academic progress and those that are undermining it.

Blueprint – 2013–2025 (Malaysia Ministry OF Education, 2012. Preliminary

EDUCATION BLUEPRINT (2013–2025).

 HTTP://WWW.MOE.GOV.MY/USERFILES/FILE/Ppp/Preliminary-Blueprint-
Eng.PDF)

(Raj, 2012raj, P. S. (2012, April 20). Sedentary LIFESTYLE

HTTP://WWW.NST.COM.MY/OPINION/LETTERS-TO-THE-
EDITOR/SEDENTARY-LIFESTYLE-IT-S-TIME-TO-UNPLUG-AND-PLAY-1.75817 . 
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