Is my Smartphone Hurting Me?

There is no doubt that smartphones and social media have drastically changed the social scene for the late millennial and Gen-Z generations along with demonstrating significant technological advancements in the world. Whether or not these changes have been for the better or worse for impressionable children and teenagers is argued in Jean Twenge's "Have Smartphones destroyed a Generation" and "No, Smartphones are not Destroying a Generation" by Sarah Rose Cavanagh. Twenge warns of the negative psychological effects heavy smartphone use has on younger generations through the use of the example of 13-year-old Athena and statistical evidence to compare the social behaviors of teenagers throughout the years. In response, Cavanagh refutes the stats Twenge uses due to its "cherry-picking" bias and weak sources of information through correlations. She then provides evidence that smartphone use actually has as many benefits as harms to balance out the argument. 

My first smartphone was a white LG G2 that I received on Christmas in 5th grade. I had begged for one and said it would be the only thing I'd get that year. I definitely was not ready for one as I dropped and shattered the screen several months later and was without a phone for two years. I then got a clunky Samsung smartphone that was mainly meant for phone calls with my parents. I was told that I had to prove that I could handle a phone before I could upgrade to an iPhone. I immediately downloaded all the social and became enraptured by the media I consumed daily. Although I did not have the nicest phone, my peers at school still envied that I was allowed to have apps like Snapchat and Instagram and would always ask me to use my phone to check them out. It was my thing in middle school. Although I did not go out as much, I still hung out with friends at parks and went on walks with them at least twice a week, so I don't agree with the idea that social media makes teenagers hermits. Furthermore, I was lucky to never be a victim of cyberbullying, so social media never made me lose self-confidence. I will admit, however, I did sleep with my phone connected next to me for alarms. I would put it on silence, though, so the buzzing wouldn't bother me. In ninth grade, I was finally gifted my first iPhone and hope to upgrade soon! 

If I were to have to keep my phone unattended for an entire day, I will admit that I wouldn't know exactly how to fill in a lot of my free time. By "free time", I mean the times when I get too bored with my school work and decide to go on my phone instead. My screen time activity reports that in one day, I pick up my phone on average 150 times. The notifications I most often pick up are from Snapchat, Messages, and  Spotify.  It's almost instinct sometimes that I reach for my phone as soon as I hear it buzz and need to check if it's anything important or more interesting than what I am working on; something that Twenge exposes as "language of addiction". In the past, I have gone through what I call a social media detox where I delete all social media apps when finals are coming up and I need to direct all focus on my studying. But, as soon as I finish all exams, I immediately redownload everything and scan through my socials to see if I missed anything important. 

In the end, I ultimately agree with Sara Rose Cavanagh's belief that everything is safe in moderation. Although overconsumption of social media can have damaging effects on teenagers, there is no need to overexaggerate the detriments nor use fear-mongering techniques to manipulate parents to completely ban cellphone use. The bottom line is that technology will always have its haters as people wildly claim it will ruin the lives of its consumers, but fail to consider the possible benefits that may trump the dangers. It is important to always remember that surveys and correlational research are not as reliable as experiments that pinpoint causation through the manipulation of variables and replications to confirm and strengthen confidence in a claim.