scholarly journals Possible Effects of Internet Use on Cognitive Development in Adolescence

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 4-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn L. Mills
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Development ◽  
Empirical Evidence ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Internet Use ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Online Environment ◽  
Policy Makers

The rise of digital media use and the ability to be in almost constant connection to the Internet has raised a number of concerns about how Internet use could impact cognitive abilities. In particular, parents and policy makers are concerned with how being ‘constantly online’ might disrupt social and cognitive development. This review integrates the latest empirical evidence on Internet use with relevant experimental studies to discuss how online behaviors, and the structure of the online environment, might affect the cognitive development of adolescents. Popular concerns are discussed in light of the reviewed evidence, and remaining gaps in knowledge are highlighted.

Hurry Up and Wait: Oppositional Compliance and Networking around the State in Kuwait

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deborah L. Wheeler
Keyword(s):  
Civic Engagement ◽  
New Media ◽  
Social Environment ◽  
Internet Use ◽  
Media Use ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Ethnographic Research ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
The Public ◽  
The World

In Chapter 4, data collected through ethnographic research and structured interviews are used to argue that new media tools when used, can profoundly alter social and political practices in Kuwait. Internet use removes inhibitions, gives the public a voice, encourages people to demand access to current, transparent news and information, and enables citizens to become more engaged and active in the world. In the words of one 55 year old female Kuwaiti participant, the Internet “opens the eyes of the younger generation and because of this, they find more freedom to exercise and they can compare freedom in their countries to that in other countries” (Interview, July 2009, Kuwait City). Explanations for the increasingly volatile political and social environment in Kuwait are explored in light of new media use. The persistence of patriarchy in spite of enhanced civic engagement reveals the puzzling nature of oppositional compliance in the emirate.

scholarly journals El arte digital y su relación con la violencia de género

2019 ◽  
pp. 65
Author(s):  
Adriana Graciela Segura-Mariño ◽  
Andrés García-Umaña
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Digital Art ◽  
Gender Violence ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Audience Participation ◽  
Online Environment ◽  
Traditional Media ◽  
Direct Communication ◽  
Two Stages

Resumen: Los medios digitales permiten una comunicación más directa que los tradicionales. Los activistas pueden optimizar su labor al encontrar nuevas formas de difundir mensajes, construidos en formatos audiovisuales con un componente estratégico para contrarrestar problemas sociales, como la violencia de género. Con esta investigación se pretende determinar si el arte digital es una herramienta persuasiva contra este problema en el entorno online. Esto se resolvió a través de dos etapas: la primera consta de una revisión bibliográfica; la segunda consiste en el análisis de contenidos sobre el desarrollo de las acciones online de artivistas que luchan contra la violencia de género, y sobre los proyectos influyentes (según ONU Mujeres y el Festival Iberoamericano de la Publicidad – FIAP) que se han realizado en distintos contextos geográficos, identificando su difusión en plataformas de comunicación, los formatos, contenidos, audiencia y engagement. Se detectó que no se aprovecha estratégicamente la comunicación 2.0; los pocos artivistas que tienen presencia en Internet se limitan a convocar a acciones offline; si bien los proyectos influyentes rompen estereotipos y promueven la participación de la audiencia, no se dirigen a los adolescentes, que son quienes más utilizan Internet. El trabajo multidisciplinario es clave para diseñar soportes altamente visuales y persuasivos.Abstract: Digital media allow a more direct communication than traditional media. Activists can optimize their work finding new ways to spread messages, which are built in audiovisual formats with a strategic component to counteract social problems, such as gender violence. The objective of this research is to determine if digital art is a persuasive tool against this problem in the online environment. This was resolved through two stages: the first one consists of a bibliographic review; the second one consists of a content analysis on the development of online actions by artivists who work against violence of gender, and on the influential projects (according to UN Women and the Ibero-American Advertising Festival - FIAP) that have been carried out in different geographical contexts, identifying their diffusion in communication platforms, the formats, contents, audience and engagement. It was detected that 2.0 communication is not used strategically; the few artivists with presence on the Internet only call for offline actions; Although influential projects break stereotypes and promote audience participation, they do not target adolescents, the ones who most use the Internet. Multidisciplinary work is key to designing highly visual and persuasive supports.

scholarly journals The impact of digital media on children’s intelligence while controlling for genetic differences in cognition and socioeconomic background

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruno Sauce ◽  
Magnus Liebherr ◽  
Nicholas Judd ◽  
Torkel Klingberg
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Genetic Differences ◽  
Socioeconomic Background ◽  
Video Gaming ◽  
Flynn Effect ◽  
Cognitive Benefits ◽  
Watching Tv ◽  
The Impact

Digital media defines modern childhood, but its cognitive effects are unclear and hotly debated. We estimated the impact of different types of screen time (watching, socializing, or gaming) on children’s intelligence while controlling for genetic differences in cognition and socioeconomic background. We analyzed 9855 children from the ABCD dataset with measures of intelligence at baseline (ages 9-10) and after two years. At baseline, time watching and socializing were negatively correlated with intelligence, while gaming had no correlation. After two years, gaming positively impacted intelligence, but socializing had no effect. This is consistent with cognitive benefits documented in experimental studies on video gaming. Unexpectedly, watching videos also benefited intelligence, contrary to prior research on the effect of watching TV. Broadly, our results are in line with research on the malleability of cognitive abilities from environmental factors, such as cognitive training and the Flynn effect.

scholarly journals Materiality, Authority, and Digital Religion: The Case of a Neo-Pagan Forum

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulia Evolvi
Keyword(s):  
Material Culture ◽  
Qualitative Analysis ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Religious Authority ◽  
Traditional Authority ◽  
Authority Figures ◽  
Sources Of Authority

The study of material culture increasingly pays attention to digital religion, but there are certain aspects, such as religious authority, that remain under-researched. Some questions are still open for inquiry: What can a material approach contribute to the understanding of religious authority in digital venues? How can authority be materially displayed on the Internet? This article shows how religious authority is affected by material practices connected with digital media use through the qualitative analysis of a Neo-Pagan forum, The Celtic Connection. Neo-Pagans tend to hold a non-traditional notion of authority, accord great importance to material practices, and extensively use the Internet. The analysis of the forum suggests that Neo-Pagans use digital venues to look for informal sources of authority and strategies to embed materiality in online narratives. The article claims that it is important to develop new frameworks to analyze non-traditional authority figures and new definitions of media that include both physical objects and communication technologies.

More Time on Technology, Less Happiness? Associations Between Digital-Media Use and Psychological Well-Being

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 372-379 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean M. Twenge
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Psychological Well Being ◽  
Frequent Users ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Upward Social Comparison ◽  
Variance Explained

Studies using large samples consistently find that more frequent users of digital media are lower in psychological well-being than less frequent users; even data sets used as evidence for weak effects show that twice as many heavy users (vs. light users) are low in well-being. Differences in perspective may stem from the statistics used; I argue that comparing well-being across levels of digital-media use is more useful than the percentage of variance explained, as most studies on digital-media use do not measure other influences on well-being (e.g., genetics, trauma), and these other influences, unlike frequency of digital-media use, are rarely controllable. Nonusers are generally lower in well-being than light users of digital media, however, suggesting that limited use may be beneficial. Longitudinal and experimental studies suggest that at least some of the causation moves from digital-media use to lower well-being. Mechanisms may include the displacement of activities more beneficial to well-being (sleep, face-to-face social interaction), upward social comparison, and cyberbullying.

scholarly journals Risks and Opportunities for Youth in the Digital Era

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vasileios Stavropoulos ◽  
Frosso Motti-Stefanidi ◽  
Mark D. Griffiths
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Internet Use ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Developmental Trajectories ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Heated Debate ◽  
Use Of The Internet ◽  
The Individual

Abstract. Due to continued groundbreaking digital advancements, Internet use has increased significantly. This has led to a heated debate in relation to weighing the many advantages of the technology against its potentially deleterious effects. To address such questions, experts converge on the need for greater knowledge around the way individual differences, partly shaped by an individual’s unique experiences of engaging with the medium, and partly by other real-life experiences, lead to different developmental trajectories. Consequently, the goals of the present review are to (i) broadly describe differences in digital media applications, users, and usage; (ii) introduce the Cyber-Developmental Framework (CDF), as an overarching framework for understanding individual differences in adaptive and maladaptive digital media use among youth; (iii) delineate the cyber-component of this framework in relation to users’ experience of the digital context, their activity within it, as well as their digital self-presence, which may have an impact on their digital media use; and (iv) summarize priorities and future directions through the lens of this CDF. Within this context, this review particularly emphasizes the effect of digital media use on youth’s psychological well-being. It is argued that the trajectory youth will follow in their use of the Internet is a function of the interplay between their characteristics, their proximate and distal contexts, and the particular features of the digital application(s) that the individual is engaged in. The review points to the need to conduct research focusing on better understanding the developmental and digital-context-related influences on youth’s trajectories of Internet use.

scholarly journals Conceptualizing the (non) users of the internet

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Park Sora ◽  
Catherine A. Middleton ◽  
Matthew Allen
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
Social Exclusion ◽  
Internet Use ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Limited Capacity ◽  
Levels Of Use ◽  
New Type ◽  
Low Levels ◽  
Digital Exclusion

Most studies about internet use examine how usage differs among users and why. Less attention has been paid to the varied degrees of non-use or low levels of use. Non-adopters of digital media are usually understood as not having access to digital media. However, there is a considerable variation among them with regards to how and why they lack the connectivity. Furthermore, it is important to acknowledge those who do have access but use the internet only in a limited capacity. Digital exclusion does not only occur among those who do not have access but expands to those who cannot use the internet effectively. A new type of digital exclusion is emerging due to this variation of usage and appropriation. We propose a nuanced approach in defining the various levels of internet non- and low use. Rather than highlighting how social exclusion, therefore the lack of connectivity, leads to digital exclusion, this paper looks at the various contexts in which people might be digital disengaged and therefore digitally excluded.

scholarly journals Excessive and Problematic Internet Use During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 School Closure: Comparison Between Japanese Youth With and Without Autism Spectrum Disorder

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kentaro Kawabe ◽  
Rie Hosokawa ◽  
Kiwamu Nakachi ◽  
Ayumi Yoshino ◽  
Fumie Horiuchi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Internet Use ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
School Closure ◽  
Problematic Internet Use ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
Excessive Internet Use

Internet use in the youth has increased manifold during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) generally have a higher risk of problematic internet use. The aim of this study is to investigate the differences in internet and related digital media use between children with ASD and their typically developing counterparts during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this online survey in Japan conducted from April 30 to May 8, 2020, we analyzed digital media time of 84 children with ASD and 361 age- and gender-matched controls before and after school closure. Digital media use duration was significantly longer in the ASD group than in the control group before the pandemic. The increase of media use time was more prominent in the control group than in the ASD group. We observed excessive Internet use among children with ASD and without ASD, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is necessary to establish strategies to prevent excessive internet use in not only children and adolescents with ASD but also without ASD in the post-pandemic world.

scholarly journals Is this local e-democracy? How the online sphere of influence shaped local politics. Empirical evidence from the Manchester Congestion Charge referendum

2012 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-66
Author(s):  
Paul Anthony Hepburn
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Evidence ◽  
Local Politics ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Local Democracy ◽  
Local Policy ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Democratic Practice ◽  
Congestion Charge ◽  
Sphere Of Influence ◽  
The Uk

The debate on the potential of the internet to transform democratic practice appears to have settled around a balanced, empirically driven consensus that sees the internet as a political sphere of influence. This article acknowledges this and drawing upon a network ethnography approach provides empirical evidence demonstrating how this online sphere was used to influence the recent Manchester Congestion Charge referendum in the UK. It illustrates the online sphere as a locally contested political space where ‘politics as usual’ appears to prevail. Nonetheless, it also provides evidence of civic activists ably using the online network to get their voices heard and argues that prospects for this online sphere enhancing local democracy are in fact contingent upon the agency of these activists and local policy makers.

scholarly journals European research on children’s internet use: Assessing the past and anticipating the future

2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 1103-1122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonia Livingstone ◽  
Giovanna Mascheroni ◽  
Elisabeth Staksrud
Keyword(s):  
Internet Use ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Moral Panics ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Internet Studies ◽  
The Past ◽  
Evidence Review ◽  
The Eu

In this article, we reflect critically on the research agenda on children’s Internet use, framing our analysis using Wellman’s three ages of Internet studies and taking as our case study the three phases of research by the EU Kids Online network from 2006 to 2014. Following the heyday of moral panics, risk discourses and censorious policy-making that led to the European Commission’s first Internet Action Plan 1999–2002, EU Kids Online focused on conceptual clarification, evidence review and debunking of myths, thereby illustrating the value of systematic documentation and mapping, and grounding academic, public and policy-makers’ understanding of ‘the Internet’ in children’s lives. Consonant with Wellman’s third age, which emphasizes analysis and contextualization, the EU Kids Online model of children’s online risks and opportunities helps shift the agenda from how children engage with the Internet as a medium to how they engage with the world mediated by the Internet.

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