Claim: I think social media is ok

Counterclaim: although I can see why people would think it’s bad for kids

Cleveland clinic: https://health.clevelandclinic.org/dangers-of-social-media-for-youth/

Effects of Social Media on Children

 Recent poll from Mott Poll Report (https://mottpoll.org/reports/sharing-too-soon-children-and-

social-media-apps) stated that:
o in the past 6 months, 49% of children 10-12 years old used socmed, 28% educational
apps, and 23% no apps
o for 7-9 years, 32% of children use socmed, 50% educ, and 18% no apps
o overall parent concerns about social media app:
 sharing info without realizing 69%
 sexual predators 69%
 seeing adult images or videos 64%
 impact on children
o according to
(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0747563221003769) social
media impacts children 11 years old on ig and snapchat more likely to have problematic
digital behaviors such as having online-only friends and visiting sites parents disapprove
of and are more prone to taking part in online harassment
o https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33677431/ says that children who use tiktok are
developing tics and having tic-like attacks, experiencing movement disorder brought by
stress and anxiety due to social media consumption
o According to dr. Eshleman children develop an increased period of irritability or
frustration directed towards parents when theyre being asked to do something they
don’t want to do and stop doing something they enjoy
 Dr. Eshleman: kids don’t still have cognitive and executive functioning to think through harmful
situations and why those might be a bad idea

Raisingchildren.net.au: https://raisingchildren.net.au/teens/entertainment-technology/digital-life/social-
media

Social media benefits and risks: pre-teens and teenagers

Benefits:

 Entertainment
 Explore
 Extension of offline and face-to-face interactions
 Can connect pre-teens and teenagers to online global groups based on shared interests
  Could be support networks for young with, for example, disability, lgbtq+ teenagers, or children
from different cultural backgrounds
 Sense of belonging

Risks:

 Inappropriate content
 Uploading inappropriate content
 Cyberbullying
 Data breaches

American psychological association: https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2023/02/harms-

benefits-social-media-kids

APA chief scientist outlines potential harms, benefits of social media for kids

 Apa chief science officer mitch prinstein, phd said:

o Developmental neuroscientists have revealed that there are two highly critical periods
for adaptive neural development,” Prinstein said in written testimony. “One of these is
the first year of life. The second begins at the outset of puberty and lasts until early
adulthood (i.e., from approximately 10 to 25 years old). This latter period is highly
relevant, as this is when a great number of youths are offered relatively unfettered
access to devices and unrestricted or unsupervised use of social media and other online
platforms.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8022744/

https://www.aacap.org/AACAP/Families_and_Youth/Facts_for_Families/FFF-Guide/Social-Media-and-
Teens-100.aspx