Amidst the onslaught of new phone policies, it’s incredibly valuable to reflect on our relationship with our devices. Considering the unique situation that high schoolers today have grown up in, by looking back at the way we utilize social media and the technology around us, we can analyze its impact on our habits and social tendencies.
Teens today have grown up with technology, and I mean that literally. Technology has further developed, spread, and “grown,” as have we, and it has been incorporated into our lives every step of the way. From iPad Nanos, family computers, and living room TVs in our early childhood, to the iPads and bare-bone cell phones in middle school, and finally the MacBooks and mostly unrestricted phones we use today. Over time, technology’s uses and presence has changed, but it has never been nonexistent. This means that as we’ve gained more awareness, many of us have observed its impacts on not only our peers, but also ourselves. According to a 2024 report by the CDC, one-half of teenagers ages 12–17 had 4 hours or more of daily screen time (50.4%), but furthermore, those teenagers reported having experienced anxiety (27.1%) or depression symptoms (25.9%) in the past 2 weeks.
Without a doubt, the amount of time that we spend on our devices has led to at least some lack of social abilities, but what about what it contributes to our social lives? Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat are all apps with an extremely high number of teenage users. However, as Gen Z has been getting older, we aren’t having the same migration onto dating apps as the generations with access before us have done. We have more or less stayed confined to the apps filled with short form content and direct communication that we’ve become comfortable with. So what does this mean?
Researchers believe this reflects the growing romanticism that Gen Z has with meeting one another “organically”. Of course, in the 21st century, this desire for a less superficial connection is at odds with how the rest of the world has utilized technology. That being said, even the ones complaining about the unnecessary rampant tech usage are part of the problem, even if it’s no fault of their own. From online school experienced in the pandemic, the thriving trend of remote work, even to the dissolvement of the “3rd Place,” there really is no place for Gen Z to live out their unrealistic dreams of the meet-cute they watched in the romcoms of their childhood. So, complaining the whole way, we retreat back onto our well-loved social media.
Perhaps there is no solution to the stunted social skills or widespread reclusivity of teenagers today. That being said, it can’t be denied that part of the problem is the lack of willingness to make an effort to talk to our peers. Forget a romantic relationship, maybe it’s time that we reintroduce the idea of real-life acquaintances and small talk.
Sources:
Teens, Technology, and Relationships
Why Gen Z Is Ditching Dating Apps
Why online dating isn’t a perfect match for Generation Z
Daily Screen Time Among Teenagers: United States, July 2021–December 2023
