Electronic devices are negatively affecting teens

ISAAC

Grade 9 students in the Collective Voice program at Aden Bowman Collegiate share their lives and opinions through columns. Selected columns run each Monday in The Saskatoon StarPhoenix.

Technology use has officially become an addiction.

Studies have shown that using technology can release the same chemical reaction in the brain as other addictive things like drugs or alcohol. For example, when you see on your phone that you got a good deal on an online purchase, or someone liked your photo on social media, the reaction occurs and makes you feel good.

But it goes too far when some people crave this good feeling.

Technology addiction can be prevented. Ways to fight it include doing a technology cleanse for a week or so, or removing the technology from the person.

A well-known spoken word poet and activist, Prince Ea, said “Technology has made us more selfish and separate than ever. And while it claims to connect us, connection has gotten no better.”

This quotation is very powerful and demonstrates a good understanding of how much technology has affected millennials and adults in a negative way, and how social media is more of an antisocial network.

Technology, smart phones especially, has affected teens. According to a family education centre called Common Sense Media, 72 per cent of teens feel the need to immediately check their devices when they get a notification. Cellphones have become an extension of our bodies; users rarely go anywhere without their phones.

So, has my generation lost the art of socializing?

When my parents were younger, there was less technology. If they wanted to get in touch with someone they would hop on a bike and go to their friend’s house. They always talk about how few options they had to entertain themselves. My parents might have had to use their imaginations, but at least it was simple and they didn’t have to run a social media account in order to have lots of friends.

Many technology problems have started from the app Snapchat. The problem with Snapchat is that whatever you send goes away very quickly. This makes people who would normally be shy in real life overconfident, because what they say will go away and they do not have to say it to anyone’s face.

Some people I know brag about how many ‘friends’ they have on Snapchat. They crave attention and followers, so they will follow people they have never met, just to feel more popular. It makes them look like they have lots of friends online, but in the real world they have very few because they shy away from real people to talk to their online friends.

Even worse is that many children are born into this habit of technology. When I was born in 2003, this technology was still just starting to accelerate into the world, but now you see it everywhere you go.

From kids playing Angry Birds at a restaurant to everybody on Saskatoon Transit staring at their phones, technology is everywhere and we need to accept it. However, we need to know when is a good time to use it.

Technology will play a large part in the future of humanity because there are always so many new tech developments. People of all ages need to understand that there are other things to do.

In my opinion, Saskatoon is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Please look up from your devices and see it in its true beauty.