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Michelle Cardoza

Jennifer Rodrick

English 115

September 26, 2017

Project Web

Technology as a whole has become an important part of our lives and society. This

technology can range from our cars, our medicine, our jobs and our social media. The

advancement of technology has become inevitable and so has our dependency on it. Our social

media especially is one that seems to effect the younger generations more than ever before.

Instagram has over the years become one of the most used social media platforms among teens.

This social media platform enables teens to portray whatever it is they would like through

pictures and videos. Many teenagers use Instagram to portray who they are or who they wish

people to see them as along with the occasional photo of their dinner and a video of their

adorable cat sneezing. It is because of the wide range of posts that teenagers can portray through

their social media that they have gone as far as to refer to it as their life through pictures.

However, the real question is how much of their post is actually them and their life? And not just

what they wish for others to see their life as? Our social media does not only change the way we

portray ourselves but it also changes the meaning why we do certain things, it changes the way

that we communicate and interact with each other, it changes the way we bully and lower ones

low self-esteem, although people of almost all ages seem to be online teenagers especially seem

to be negatively impacted by being on social media and the most vulnerable of the teenage

population seems to be female.

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Social media platforms such as Instagram seem to be affecting the way that teenagers

choose to portray themselves as well as how they identify themselves and work towards

achieving that social acceptance, social media platforms such as Instagram seem to show teens

the value of likes and comments by rewarding those who achieve the most average likes and

comments on their posts. In the article Teens Engage more with Fewer Photos: Temporal and

Comparative Analysis on Behaviors in Instagram authors Jin Yea Jang, Kyungsik Han, Haiyan

Jia and Patric C. Shih take a deeper look into the correlation between age and the increase in

activity online on platforms such as Instagram. The article seems to focus on the difference

between the use of social media within adults and teens. They came to the conclusion that adults

use Instagram at a much smaller scale than teens because teens seek popularity within their posts.

They state teens post fewer photos than adults; teens remove more photos based on the number

of likes the photos received; and teens have less diverse photo content teens are more engaged

in liking and commenting more than adults. (Jang, Han, Lee, Jia and Shih, 71) What the

authors are trying to say through this is that although teens post less that does not mean that they

are not as active. Teens just seem to have a much different purpose than adults when it comes to

their post. The authors seem to emphasize that teenagers seek that acceptance when they post

online and this acceptance comes in the form of likes and comments. This acceptance can go

as far as to not only be based on the amount of likes and comments but also be based on the

amount of friends or followers it is that one has. This can have a negative affect on teens because

society is basically telling them that if there post isnt liked or approved by others then they

should have it online. The fact that we are ok with the fact that we should be glued to our phones

and computers post uploading to ensure that we have received enough likes or comments to keep

it up. This in turn leads to extreme low self-esteem because it is teaching teens that the opinion
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of others hold more value than their own. Studies have shown that about 80% of teenage girls

claim to see their body negatively and have low self-esteem issues due to comments made by

both friends and family. What this means is the majority of teenage girls are suffering from low

self-esteem and this caused by comments made by people they trust. This can in turn leads girls

to portray themselves in ways in which they can ensure they are liked by those around them.

More times than not this need for social acceptance will lead teenage girls to begin trying

twice as hard before taking a photo this includes changing their makeup, outfit, choosing proper

lighting and many times posting provocative images. In The Sad Decline of Teenage Snogging

by Mary Wakefield she talks about her friends 17-year old daughter and her engagement in

online photos. She explains the young girls daily routine which includes dressing up and doing

her make up for no purpose other than that of taking photos for her social media. The author

states Her mother says the girls mood is linked quite precisely to the number of likes an

evenings look has received. No likes and shes disconsolate, sometimes inconsolable. The

author is trying to portray to what extent exactly these likes on social media can affect a teens

self-esteem. Like this young girl many young girls feelings are directly affected by the reach of

their post online. Young girls begin to feel that no matter how hard they try they cannot seem to

reach societies idea of beautiful.

Teenage girls seem to suffer more from low self-esteem when they engage in rating

games online. In Amelia Taits Hot or Not she further explains this online rating. Although

actual websites created to do this such as hotornot.com have been taken down teens still seem to

find a way to seek validation through online rating. On Instagram this is done when an individual

posts an image and tags it #like4aRate. The author states The teenage years are typically a

time where a young person develops their self-identity, and they do this through comparisons. If
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teenagers are simply comparing themselves to others are they really developing their self-

identity? This idea of social acceptance does not only change how a teen acts or is portrayed

online it also changes them in person. Teens begin to feel that if they make multiple relationships

with multiple people then they are bound to be liked and given good rates. However, thats not

always the case and in turn teenagers end up in meaningless relationships seeking acceptance.

Some may argue that seeking social acceptance online is not all bad because if done so

the right way it can have many benefits. For example as mentioned in Mary, Wakefields The

Sad Decline of Teenage Snogging some teenage girls are reached out to, hired and paid to take

photos and post wearing a certain companies clothing. Of course this doesnt come very easy,

those who are reached out have to have a large followers list along with thousands of likes and

comments. Many may think that the fact the young girls get paid is a positive thing and although

it is it is what the girls do to achieve the amount of likes and followers necessary to be hired that

is truly the problem. Many young girls turn to posting provocative images sometimes half naked

photos to achieve their goal. The real problem which this is that it is teaches girls that theyre

valued for their body. It objectives them and teaches them selling and promoting based on sex

appeal is good thing.

Technological advances are inevitable. We live in the age of technology and rely

on it for many everyday things. However, not all aspects of technology are great. Social media

had many negative effects for teenagers especially and even more towards young women. Social

media platforms such as Instagram teach them that validation is necessary and that gaining it can

in turn bring them benefits at a cost of course. Technology is a great thing and although it can be

an extremely positive thing for teenagers it affects their self-esteem and makes it extremely low.

Although, we probably cant change how social media is used we at home can teach teenagers to
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value themselves and teach them their self-worth is worth more than a few likes and comments.

As parents, caretakers, and friends we should teach young women to value their body and not

objectify themselves for social acceptance.

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1. Tait, Amelia. "Hot or Not." New Statesman, vol. 145, no. 5328, 19 Aug. 2016, p. 17.

EBSCOhost, libproxy.csun.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=

true&db=aph&AN=117524953&site=ehost-live. Accessed 9/13/2017

2. Jang, Jin Yea, et al. Teens Engage More with Fewer Photos: Temporal and

Comparative Analysis on Behaviors in Instagram. Proceedings of the 27th ACM

Conference on Hypertext and Social Media, 2016, pp. 7181. Accessed

9/13/2017

3. Reeve, Elspeth. Hot Topic: for Teenage Girls on Social Media Attention Is a Way to Be

Heard. The New Republic, vol. 247, no. 5, 2016, p. 69. Accessed 9/13/2017

4. REEVE, ELSPETH. "Hot Topic." New Republic, vol. 247, no. 5, May 2016, pp. 69-71.

EBSCOhost,libproxy.csun.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=t

rue&db=aph&AN=114018421&site=ehost-live. Accessed 9/26/2017

5. Wakefield, M. (2016, Feb 27). Mary wakefield: The sad decline of

teenage snogging.The Spectator, Retrieved from

http://libproxy.csun.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docvi

ew/1768165163?accountid=7285 Accessed 9/25/20 http://www.the-

self-esteem-shop.com/low-self-esteem-statistics.html

6. Website TitleLow Self Esteem Statistics What Are Some Low Self

Esteem Statistics Date Accessed September 29, 201717

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