Teens are on social media every chance they can get, right? Not quite.
A new survey from The Associated Press and NORC at the University of Chicago found that 58 percent of teens who use social media have taken at least one break from the platforms. Further, the poll of 790 US teens age 13 to 17 revealed that 65 percent of those who took a social media hiatus did so voluntarily. Half left the platforms involuntarily.
Sixty percent of teens who have taken breaks from social media have taken three or more times, the survey found. About half said their breaks typically lasted for a week or longer. Those who have not taken breaks said they stay on because they don't want to miss out on things and use social media to find out what's happening in the world.
Overall, teens value social media — 78 percent of those who use platforms like Facebook, Snapchat, and Instagram said these services make them feel closer to their friends and family. Another 49 percent said social media makes them feel more informed. On the flip side, however, 15 percent of teens said social media makes them feel pressure, like "they always need to show the best version of themselves," the AP and NORC wrote in a news release. Ten percent said it makes them feel "overloaded with information."
The survey also revealed that the "circumstances motivating these breaks have major impacts on how teens evaluate the experience."
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"Teens who took breaks for voluntary reasons reported more positive feelings about their time away, while teens who were pushed off social media involuntarily reported greater feelings of missing out and disconnection from important people in their lives," the AP and NORC wrote. "Those who cited any of the voluntary reasons were more likely … to say they had more time to do other things, were glad to have had a break, felt relieved, and felt more connected to important people in their lives and news and information."
Those forced off social media, on the other hand, were more likely to say they felt anxious, suffered from fear of missing out, and felt less connected to important people in their lives.
Meanwhile, a seperate study from scientists at the University of Pittsburgh recently found that the more time young adults spend on social media, the more likely they are to feel isolated.
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