In the article, Alexandra Ossala looks at two different professionals’ opinions about the relationship between social anxiety and technology. Tamyra Pierce is a journalism professor at California State University and conducted a study in 2009 to test the link between social anxiety and technology in adolescents. In her study she found that when students spent more time using technology to communicate with others, they were more likely to show anxiety in regards to communicating face-to-face. This social anxiety was more prevalent in girls than boys as well. Pierce does note that additional research does need to be done; especially now, after five years, there are even more technology tools being used by teens to communicate with one another. She says, “If we are glued to technology 24/7, it’s going to have an effect on social skills-it’s just natural.” She supports this by saying that she’s noticed in her own students a growing difficulty in the students looking her in the eye and being antsy when having to talk to her.
Thomas Rodebaugh is a psychology professor at Washington University in St. Louis. Rodebaugh has a slightly different view of the relationship between social anxiety and use of technology. He first points out that almost everyone suffers from at least some social anxiety and it would be alarming if someone never experiences it. With his students, he feels that students who will interact with people on Facebook is going to interact with them in the real world as well. He feels that there is no evidence of technology having a negative effect on social anxiety. Like Pierce however, Rodebaugh feels that additional studies need to be conducted and that adolescence is the time to do it. Also, like Pierce, he has seen more laptops and cell phones in the classroom than in the past. The “constant pings of texts and Facebook notifications can sometimes distract students, pulling them away from their face-to-face interactions and into the virtual world of digital communication.”
Regardless if there is a link between technology and social anxiety, it is not likely that it will be banned in the classroom anytime soon. Many teachers are using technology more and more in the classroom. Rodebaugh says that he thinks he might need to ban in the future. Pierce however does not think banning is the solution. She thinks it’s about how the technology is used and the balance between communicating face-to-face and online.
Reflection:
When I came across this article the concept of social media having an impact on anxiety intrigued me. I especially liked that the article looked at two points of view. I am a strong advocate for using technology in the classroom, but can also strongly relate to anxiety and its struggles. This article has caused me to ask myself, “Are websites like Facebook and Instagram causing more harm than good in the younger generations?” I think that adolescents using social media sites need to be closely monitored. I don’t think social media has to automatically lead toward social anxiety. I think it really comes down to parents being sure to monitor what their child is using the social media for. For example, a high school girl may be shy and not be comfortable talking to a boy in person. She may be comfortable messaging with him through Facebook or texting. That online form of communicating can lead toward a stronger in person relationship down the road. On the other hand, another student that is more outgoing may use social media as a way to say (write) things that they would not have the courage to say in person. While these things could be positive, I’ve heard more negative experiences. Middle school students will use Instagram to write mean comments or post mean pictures. I can then understand how this interaction on Instagram can lead toward social anxiety.
Ossola, A. (2015, January 14). A New Kind of Social Anxiety in the Classroom. Retrieved January 13, 2015, from http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2015/01/the-socially-anxious-generation/384458/
No comments:
Post a Comment