New Study Links Certain Media With Damaging Behavior In Teens

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Does a night at home binge-watching a favorite TV series, constantly refreshing your Facebook feed, or trying to advance to the next level of your video game affect your social prowess? A recent study conducted by the Brigham Young University (BYU) School of Family Life argues that media choices can be affected by and affect the likelihood of experiencing social withdrawal. 

BYU professors Drs. Larry Nelson and Sarah Coyne, of the School of Family Life, recently published a study entitled "Withdrawing to a Virtual World: Associations between Subtypes of Withdrawal, Media Use, and Maladjustment in Emerging Adults" in the journal of Developmental Psychology. 

Their research shows that media could have a direct impact on social withdrawal and future behavioral problems, depending on the type of withdrawal and media being consumed.

The study sampled 204 college students from two public universities. The students self-reported on their social behaviors and media use twice, at the beginning and the end of one year.

The Study

While there has been substantial research published about the relationship between media and shyness, BYU's study examines multiple forms of withdrawal, media use, and a wide range of potential outcomes of being withdrawn and using negative forms of media in emerging adulthood. 

"No existing empirical work distinguishes between the various forms of withdrawal as they relate to media use in emerging adults, ages of 18 to 25," Dr. Nelson said.

By following these young people over the course of a year, it was possible to see how social withdraw and media use at one point in time impacted the development of 'emerging adults'.

An important starting point was understanding different reasons for why people withdraw from social interactions. Being withdrawn is not inherently bad and it doesn't always look the same. "We tend to categorize all quiet, withdrawn people as shy or introverted but it's important to understand people have different reasons for being nonsocial," Nelson said.

The study distinguishes three types of withdrawal in young adults:

·         Shy: When a person wants to be social but is held back by fear

·         Unsocial: When a person has no problem being social but prefers to be alone

·         Avoidant: When a person does everything they can to avoid social interaction

Each form of withdrawal was studied in connection with popular media like social media and email, and other negative forms of media such as pornography, violent video games and online gambling.

The Results

The study authors noted that when compared to non-withdrawn individuals, all three withdrawn groups used more email but it was only the avoidant group  who played more video games, violent video games, gambling, and pornography than their more social peers. The authors then examined the outcomes of using these negative forms of media.

Avoidant individuals were tied to higher levels of negative media use (violent video games, gambling, pornography) and these higher levels of media use led to negative outcomes a year later. Specifically, the data showed the 'avoidant' subjects' negative media use led to depression and risky/damaging behaviors like crime, substance abuse, and more over the following year, something that didn't happen with their shy and unsociable peers.

"Young people need to be aware of the potential risks of their choices," Nelson said. "The key thing is that for avoidant individuals, the more problematic media they use, the higher they're at risk for these negative outcomes."

Taken together, the issue with negative or problematic media seems to be that they become a problem when they replace social interaction: doing so greatly affects the behaviors of young adults avoiding social interaction and causes some antisocial individuals to become more withdrawn.  

The Takeaway

Take a step back before accusing young adults of spending too much time using their phones or playing video games. Not all social withdrawal and media use is bad!

Instead, look at whether or not your kid's media use and withdrawal is the product of trying to disconnect or run away from their social spheres.

Finally, teach your kids the importance of balance. Despite the tendency of many young adults to spend their time engaged in the pursuit of leisure, fun, and easy things, teach them to balance those activities with ones that are growth-promoting.