When Emotions Guide Adolescents’ Media Use
Young people who feel rej ected by peers are more likely to experience anger and frustration. A s a result, they are more likely to look for antisocial and risky con tent on media such as YouTube and TikTok, says Xanthe Plaisier in her thesis.
Plaisier investigated how adolescents a re attracted to media with antisocial, risky and norm-breaking behavi our, such as violence, bullying, drug use, abusive language and sexua lly transgressive behaviour. "I wanted to better understand for whom and under what circumstances media can have harmful effects."
" Young people grow up in a world full of media in which such content i s easily accessible via platforms such as YouTube and TikTok. Short s nippets from higher age rated series, such as Squid Game, and user-cr eated videos depicting dangerous stunts, pranks or illegal activities , are often shared among peers. This raises concerns about possible c onsequences for behaviour and moral development."
Blurr ing moral norms
“My research shows that rejection by friends blurs moral norms: adolescents who feel rejected by peers an d are angry or frustrated as a result, are more likely to find transg ressive behaviour in the media acceptable and seek it out more often. Young adults don’t show this effect. This indicates that it is spe cific to young people in the developmental phase of adolescence.
< p>“The social environment plays a role in this: young people adjust their media preferences to the judgments of peers. However, rejected young people ignore negative reactions and continue to find antisoci al behaviour acceptable, even when peers disapprove of it. Furthermor e, it appears that the type of emotion and how young people regulate that emotion are important: anger processed by blaming others reinfor ces the preference for antisocial media, while self-reproach does not have this effect. In short, emotions and their processing strongly i nfluence why young people find cross-border media attractive." For parents, teachers and youth workers, this means that guidance on media use is important, especially in moments of emotional tension. I t is not about forbidding everything, but about teaching young people to look critically and to regulate emotions. In this way, conscious and healthy media use can be stimulated."
More information on t he thesis
DESCRIPTION: When Emotions Guide Adolescents’ Media Use Youn g people who feel rejected by peers are more likely to experience ang er and frustration. As a result, they are more likely to look for ant isocial and risky content on media such as YouTube and TikTok, says X anthe Plaisier in her thesis. Plaisier investigated how adolescents are attracted to media with antisocial, risky and norm-b reaking behaviour, such as violence, bullying, drug use, abusive lang uage and sexually transgressive behaviour. "I wanted to better unders tand for whom and under what circumstances media can have harmful eff ects.""Young people grow up in a world full of media in which such co ntent is easily accessible via platforms such as YouTube and TikTok. Short snippets from higher age rated series, such as Squid Game, and user-created videos depicting dangerous stunts, pranks or illegal act ivities, are often shared among peers. This raises concerns about pos sible consequences for behaviour and moral development."Blurr ing moral norms“My research shows that rejection by friend s blurs moral norms: adolescents who feel rejected by peers and are a ngry or frustrated as a result, are more likely to find transgressive behaviour in the media acceptable and seek it out more often. Young adults don’t show this effect. This indicates that it is specific t o young people in the developmental phase of adolescence.“The socia l environment plays a role in this: young people adjust their media p references to the judgments of peers. However, rejected young people ignore negative reactions and continue to find antisocial behaviour a cceptable, even when peers disapprove of it. Furthermore, it appears that the type of emotion and how young people regulate that emotion a re important: anger processed by blaming others reinforces the prefer ence for antisocial media, while self-reproach does not have this eff ect. In short, emotions and their processing strongly influence why y oung people find cross-border media attractive."For parents, teachers and youth workers, this means that guidance on media use is importan t, especially in moments of emotional tension. It is not about forbid ding everything, but about teaching young people to look critically a nd to regulate emotions. In this way, conscious and healthy media use can be stimulated."More information on the thesis END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR