Adolescent Online Communication: Old Issues, New Intensities

Vol.1,No.1(2007)

Abstract
Much has been made of the new communication forms that are emerging online and of their popularity among adolescents. Are these new forms fundamentally changing adolescent behavior or are they simply providing new venues for what are “traditionally” adolescent issues? In this talk, I will present findings from studies on two different communication forms to argue that these new Internet forums are being used by adolescents to confront and deal with the changes and developmental issues that they have always faced. Because of the medium’s affordances however, we sometimes see these “old” behaviors in new intensities.

Keywords:
Adolescent Online Communication; Old Issues; New Intensities
Author biography

Kaveri Subrahmanyam

Kaveri Subrahmanyam Kaveri Subrahmanyam, PhD, is Professor of Psychology at California State University, Los Angeles and Associate Director of the Children’s Digital Media Center @ Los Angeles. She studies the cognitive and social implications of interactive media use and is currently researching the daily use of interactive media among youth as well as the academic and cognitive implications of multitasking. Dr. Subrahmanyam has published several research articles on youth and digital media and co-edited a special section on interactive media and human development for Developmental Psychology (2012) and a special issue on social networking for the Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology (2008). She is the co-author (with David Smahel) of Digital Youth: The Role of Media in Development (Springer, 2011). She can be reached at ksubrah(at)calstatela.edu
References

Cubbin, C., Santelli, J., Brindis, C.D., & Braveman, P. (2005). Neighborhood context and sexual behaviors among adolescents: findings from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 37, 125-134.

[2] Erikson, E. (1959). Identity and the life cycle. New York: W. W. Norton.

[3] Furman, W., & Shaffer, L. (2003). The role of romantic relationships in adolescent development. In: Florsheim, P., ed. Adolescent romantic relations and sexual behavior: Theory, research, and practical implications. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, pp. 3-22.

[4] Garcia, E. C., Harsano, L. S., Subrahmanyam, K., & Greenfield, P.M. (2006). Blogs as a window into teenage lives. Poster presented at the Psychology Undergraduate Research Conference, UCLA, May 12, 2006.

[5] Greenfield, P. M. & Subrahmanyam, K. (2003). Online Discourse in a Teen Chatroom: New Codes and New Modes of Coherence in a Visual Medium. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 24, 713-738.

[6] Gross, E. F. (2004). Adolescent Internet use: What we expect, what teens report. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 24, 633-649.

[7] Hill, J. (1983). Early adolescence: A research agenda. Journal of Early Adolescence, 3, 1-21

[8] Johnson, F. L. & Aries, E. (1983). Conversational patterns among same-sex pairs of late adolescent close friends. The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 142, 225-238.

[9] Lenhart, A., Madden, M., & Hitlin, P. (2005). Teens and technology: Youth are leading the nation to a fully wired and mobile nation. Pew Internet and American Life Project, Washington, D.C. http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP_Teens_Tech_July2005web.pdf

[10] Li, J. S., Lipana, L., Subrahmanyam, K., & Greenfield, P.M. (2006). Quantitative analysis of blogger demographics and online self-presentation. Poster presented at the Psychology Undergraduate Research Conference, UCLA, May 12, 2006.

[11] Livingstone, S & Bober, M.. (2005). UK Children Go Online: Final Report of Key Project Findings. Economic & Social Research Council. Retrieved July 15, 2006, from http://www.children-go-online.net.

[12] Pombeni, J.L., Kierchler, E., & Palmonari, A. (1990). Identification with peers as a strategy to muddle through the troubles of the adolescent years. Journal of Adolescence, 13: 351-370.

[13] Šmahel, D. (2006). Czech Internet report: The rise of the Internet generation? In: Cyberspace 2005. Polcak, R., Skop, M. & Šmahel, D. (Eds.) Brno: Masaryk University. p. 261-268. WWW: http://www.terapie.cz/materials/wip-smahel-new-generation2006.pdf

[14] Šmahel, D. & Machovcová, K. (2006). Internet use in the Czech Republic: Gender and Age differences. In Cultural Attitudes Towards Technology and Communication 2006, Sudweeks, F., Hrachovec, H. & Ess, Ch. 2006. Murdoch, Australia : School of Information Technology, Murdoch University, 2006, p. 521-533. WWW: http://www.terapie.cz/materials/catac-tartu-2006.pdf

[15] Šmahel, D. & Subrahmanyam, K. (In Press). Any girls want to chat press 911: Partner Selection in Monitored and Unmonitored Teen Chat Rooms. CyberPsychology and Behavior.

[16] Subrahmanyam, K., Greenfield, P. M. Kraut, & Gross, E. (2001). The Impact of Computer Use on Children’s Development. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 22, 7-30.

[17] Subrahmanyam, K., Greenfield, P. M, & Tynes, B. (2004). Constructing Sexuality and Identity in an Online Teen Chatroom. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 25, 651-666.

[18] Subrahmanyam, K., Šmahel, D., & Greenfield, P. M. (2006). Connecting developmental processes to the Internet: Identity presentation and sexual exploration in online teen chatrooms. Developmental Psychology, 42, 1-12.

Metrics

3531

Views

3392

HTML views