As the years go on, the younger generations are diving deeper and deeper into social media. Yes, it is true that social media offers a surplus of different types of entertainment. However, it is extremely addicting as well as influential on everyone who uses it, especially children and teens. According to the CDC, as of 2024, 50.4 % of teenagers spend at LEAST 4 hours on their devices every single day. A majority of that 4 hours is made up of TikTok, Snapchat, and Instagram.
Not only are kids completely addicted to their screens but they are also getting strongly influenced by what they are seeing on social media. For example, let’s take a look at fashion trends. Things like low rise jeans, UGGs, and Adidas Sambas have made a major comeback in the last year. Then there are completely new trends like bows being added to everything imaginable. What is the reasoning behind all of this? The answer is that teens will view something on social media that is highly supported by a celebrity or an influencer that they admire, therefore reinforcing the idea that if their favorite TikTok influencer supports a brand, they should too. Not only do they think they should have something, they think they HAVE to get it to fit in with society.
When asked the question “Do you feel that the purchases you make have any connection to what you see on social media?” Senior Ayesha Imtiz said, “Yes one hundred percent because the people I follow on social media convince me to buy things because I believe they are good products.”
Another question was posed in order to see how much influence social media truly has on teens. Senior Zoya Siddiqui said, “Social media definitely influences a lot of people, but you just have to be careful with what you trust and make sure you do your own research before believing everything you see on TikTok.”
It is evident that teens are the target audience social media platforms prey on. The issue at hand is not that teens are simply buying things because of what they see their favorite influences using, but instead, the issue is that a large majority of them are not even aware that this is happening. While it has not been said that teenagers are the best decision-makers, it is still a massive issue that they are so easily influenced by what they see on social media. However, the real problem is that 9 times out of 10 those influenced teens are not even aware that they are susceptible to even being influenced or that the things they are purchasing are solely because of what they see online.
It is essential to educate the younger generations about these things because if they are influenced so easily by social media and to buy things like clothes, what if in the future they are influenced to do more serious things that could have negative impacts on their lives.
