My interviewee is a junior in high school. The student used their screen time information from her iPhone to help me with accurate responses. When asked what she uses her phone for the most, her screen time report told her it was clearly TikTok. The most shocking answer came when I asked how many hours a week she spends on social media. 40 hours!
I then asked her what pros and cons she experiences with social media. She said she gets sick of it easily, but it gives her something to do to save her from boredom. I asked her if her parents limit anything she is allowed to use or for how long she can use it, and she informed me that she has no restrictions but does get her phone taken away for poor behavior and grades. I connected with her through this question because I grew up the same way, full freedom or no freedom. Without social media use when she doesn't have access to her phone, she said all she feels is boredom. Surprisingly to me, she does spend some time on the phone or FaceTime as opposed to texting.
I asked her how social media has affected her daily life and her life as a whole. She told me that social media makes her less productive, moody, tired, and makes her procrastinate responsibilities. She admitted it has changed how she talks, her sense of humor, what she wears and buys, and how her friendships operate. I asked her if she thinks she would become someone she can appreciate more if she didn't use social media or kept her use limited, and she admitted she would. She shared that social media use has caused her to constantly compare herself to others and made her insecure about herself. She also feels it is the reason she is a chronic over-thinker.
I ended the interview with a question related to my research. I asked her if she knows how to tell if information online is reliable or not. I was happy to hear a yes! Her psychology teacher taught her how to do so. To relate the interview to our readings, I asked her about her video game usage. She shared she does play games on Roblox and Minecraft, and that she doesn't have any negative opinions of the games themselves-just the number of hours it can take away from her day to play them.
There is one big question, or mystery, that came from conducting this interview. If a person is fully aware that they spend way too many hours on social media, that social media makes them have low self-esteem and productivity, and that using it limitedly or not at all would make them a better person, why do they still use it? What is it about these websites that have such a hold over us? How can our desire to be better become strong enough to stay away from things that we know don't make us better?
40 hours week! A teacher works on average that amount. Its like having a job in sense. I wonder if that why so many people are doing online jobs. I mean I read you can make a ridiculous amount of money just from home. I do agree with your big question. I feel like even as an adult social media would make me feel said or inadequate like I was not living up to my full potential. People only post usually good things happening in their lives never the real stuff but that's not for everyone to know or have access to you.
ReplyDeleteWow Dalila! This is a great interview. I had so many reactions when reading your blog. 40 hours a week is a crazy amount, but I am sadly not surprised. I just told my middle school students today that I'm disappointed how many times they seek their phone in class. During school hours you're with your peers and have so much to talk about in real life. What could they possibly need to do on their phones? It seems it's almost a piece of clothing these days, many people (not just adolescents) can not go without it.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing that caught my eye, or made me think even harder, is your last paragraph. Most students are aware of how much social media influences our daily lives, with many negative aspects, so why aren't they able to reduce numbers? I can understand maybe in the cooler seasons it's hard to get out and find motivation to socialize or be active, but that is still no excuse. Social media seems to be our puppeteer.