Boldwin International School's Annual Magazine 2015-2016 | Page 41

Social Media Addiction
Social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and dozens of others allow people to stay in touch like
never before.

‫رندا أبو علي الزعر‬
‫معلمة مادة العلوم‬
،‫معلمة قديرة متميزة‬
‫مواكبة ألحدث الطرق‬
‫ لديها مسيرة‬،‫التعليمية‬
‫حافلة في التعليم في‬
‫أهم المدارس العالمية في‬
‫ عملت في مدرسة‬.‫الخليج‬
‫بولدوين في العام الدراسي‬
‫ لكنها اضطرت‬2016-2015
‫للسفر والعيش في دول‬
.‫الخليج مع عائلتها‬

However, some people spend too much time on these sites
that it begins to interfere with their lives. Psychologists are referring to this as a social media compulsion or addiction.
This habit causes some kind of pleasurable sensation; however,
it is weakening the person in some way, because it starts to
conflict with everyday responsibilities, such as family work or
social obligations.
Actually the biggest impact is on
teenagers. Those are the biggest
group in which they spend time on
social media.
Social media is harming the mental
health of teenagers. Perhaps the
worst thing about this is that teenagers need more sleep than others do,
so night time social media use could
be harmful to their health.
For instance, teenagers are supposed to build quality relationships with people around the neighborhood or in school, and to
earn friends by means of sharing respect and practicing good
manners.
Such relationships take time and effort. But because of social
networking, real and hard-earned relationships are now replaced with online relationships.
Many teenagers are leaning towards communicating with other
people through social media rather going out in person and
making tangible bonds with friends. What this means is that
they are fond of making life faster. But the question is: Is this
good for them?
The answer is whether one sees it good or bad, it must be controlled by parents.
Parents have to be aware of what their children are facing and
are involved in on social networking.
However, forcing a child to stop using it will not work too well.
Instead parents must have time to watch over their child’s online activity and limit the time of using it and thus minimizing its
negative effects.

41

‫مدرسة بولدوين العالمية‬