HOW SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCERS AFFECT TEENAGERS

SLEEP DEPRIVATION

https://www.verywellfamily.com/ways-social-media-affects-teen-mental-health-4144769

Sometimes teens spend so many hours on social media that they begin to lose valuable sleep.
Consequently, this sleep loss can lead to moodiness, a drop in grades, and overeating, as well as
exacerbate existing problems like depression, anxiety, and ADD.

One British study published in the Journal of Youth Studies surveyed 900 teens between the ages of 12
and 15 about their social media use and its impact on sleep. What they found was that one-fifth of the
teens said they "almost always" wake up during the night and log in to social media. The study also
revealed that girls were significantly more likely than boys to wake up and check social media on their
phones.

https://www.youngbhartiya.com/article/social-media-influencers-and-the-vulnerability-of-youth-to-
such-influences

(Gordon, 2018) following Social media influencers often lead to a life of comparison. Young girls and
boys of impressionable ages have access to such content, look at it, admire it to the point of idolising it
and therefore form a construct of what constitutes the “appropriate” or the “accepted” form of lifestyle.
The life of their favourite influencers is a lot different than what it is portrayed- they too have their
struggles, weaknesses and days when they do not look their best but their social media is structured in a
way to portray only the brighter side. The problem begins when there is a failure to recognize this truth
and teenagers start comparing the highlights and the ‘picture perfect’ moment of such people to their
everyday life which might not seem as glamorous in comparison. This life of constantly feeling ‘not good
enough’ or ‘not content’ with yourself leads to various other problems that highlight the third issue is
revolving around the overuse of social media. Teens addicted to social media are found to be more
susceptible to grave issues such as depression and others such as body dysmorphia and a complete lack
of communication skills due to a cut off from the real world.

https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/9295/the-role-of-social-media-influencers-in-the-lives-of-
children-and-adolescents

The impact of social media influencers on minors may have both desirable and undesirable
consequences. Influencers may inspire minors to behave pro-socially or more healthy, but they may also
show bad examples of smoking, drinking, or even criminal behavior. In addition, influencer content may
also affect minors' psychological well-being, materialism, body satisfaction.
https://www.loebigink.com/how-does-social-media-effect-youth/

For a lot of people in my age group social media is an outlet for thoughts that they are able to share with
their peers. Websites where you can interact with others your age means a lot to teenagers because it is
a form of self expression. As we begin to get older it is very important to know who you are and what
you want to do with your life, through social media you can easily find this out. So before we get into
our serious years we might as well practice how to express ourselves in a respectful way. Also social
media is an easy way to connect with people all throughout the area that you live in. In my age group a
lot of very close friendships have been formed through social media and have helped to benefit each
other in multiple ways. The reason social media makes it so easy to create bonds is your allowed to
express your likes and dislikes, which people can easily relate to. As many ways as people believe that
social media is bad, it can also provide a lot of good, you just have to use it for the right things.

https://dailycollegian.com/2019/04/the-influence-of-the-influencer/

(Emma Garber)The danger of the influencer lies in their ability to preach perfection at the tap of a
button. Possessing the ability to edit the ugly or awkward away, their content preys upon teenagers’
biggest insecurities. Though they claim to be documenting their entire lives, the audience frequently
only has access to the beautiful, polished moments. We don’t see them at their low points; we only see
the small windows of their lives that they wish to share, often edited heavily with million-dollar lighting.
Yet somehow, the underlying message behind the majority of an influencer’s work is that the teenager
watching at home should act more like their idols. They should eat the same diet, do the same workout,
wear the same clothes, buy the same makeup and live the same, but less cool, life. It becomes a
constant game of catch-up, where just as those playing along at home think they have it mastered, the
influencer announces a new diet, a new cosmetics line, a new product that viewers absolutely cannot
live without. Social media has become a hunting ground for advertisers, convincing girls during their
most vulnerable years that they need to shackle their waists into corset-like waist trainers, eat gummy
bears to make their hair grow longer and take weight loss supplements in their tea. Their lives are filled
with alleged fun and glamor, but little else. There is no fulfillment in these lives, as their friendships are
based on those with similar follower counts, and their very existences depend on the number of people
who double tap their photos.
SOCIAL MEDIA AND TEENAGER

https://www.youngbhartiya.com/article/social-media-influencers-and-the-vulnerability-of-youth-to-
such-influences

(Knightly, n.d.) An influencer is defined as a user who has the established credibility in a particular
industry. She/he has access to a large audience and possesses the ability to persuade or ‘influence’
others by utilising their authenticity and reach across a significant number of people. However, it
remains vital to analyse the deeper truth behind the effects of such an ‘influence’. The extent of this
‘influence’ is much more than expected. For example, 70% of teens are persuaded by these influencers
on social media much more as compared to an average celebrity. Brands approach them for their
product promotion in an attempt to take advantage of the control that they command over the younger
generation 6 out of 10 teens are found to be convinced of whatever their favourite social media
influencer is adopting.

https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/9295/the-role-of-social-media-influencers-in-the-lives-of-
children-and-adolescents

Social media influencers (e.g. beauty bloggers, video game vloggers, toy unboxers, instafamous) are
extremely popular among minors. Influencers seem to play an important role in minors' lives, first,
because minors spend a large part of their time watching, viewing, liking, forwarding, and commenting
on influencers' content. As such, the level of involvement with influencer content seems high. Second,
minors turn to these influencers not only for entertainment, but also for information, advice, company
and comfort. However, scientifically-grounded insights on the role of social media influencers in the lives
of children and adolescents are still scarce.

http://networkconference.netstudies.org/2019Curtin/2019/05/05/social-media-influencers-have-
influenced-the-identity-formation-of-teenagers/

(Chae, 2017)Social media influencers, also known as micro-celebrities, are notorious for creating a
perfect image of themselves online and using that image to attract attention

(Brown & Hayes, 2008) Defined as “individuals who are in a consumer’s social graph and have a direct
impact on the behaviour of that consumer” .

http://networkconference.netstudies.org/2019Curtin/2019/05/05/social-media-influencers-have-
influenced-the-identity-formation-of-teenagers/

As teenagers begin to search for a sense of self and personal identity, a lot of inspiration will come from
the flood of information that sources from any form of media in front of them, particularly social media.
Given that an element of identity formation is “thinking about the type of person you want to be”
(Arnett, 2010, p.340), there is a lot to think about when a particular narrative of what someone should
look like, and what they should be doing, and at what age they should be doing that is strongly enforced.
This can cause tensions to rise when ideas about what is considered appropriate and inappropriate to
share on social media conflict (Mascheroni, Vincent & Jiminez; 2015). As social media usage more often
than not rewards individuals for uploading and sharing only positive images through their followers’
likes and comments, this creates a deceptive cycle of only positive self-perception. Especially
considering that photos are viewed very quickly and with limited effort, if the norm is for any given
viewer to assign only a fraction of their attention span to a photo, that fraction is more likely to increase
if the photos are attractive. This subsequently encourages an individual to generate exclusively positive
content, in the hopes that it will retain the attention of their audience for longer.
HOW SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCERS EDUTE AND EMPOWER TEENAGERS
WHAT ARE THE REASONS WHY TEENAGERS FOLLOW INFLUENCERS

https://dailycollegian.com/2019/04/the-influence-of-the-influencer/

(Emma Garber) Instagram posts documenting their latest purchases, Snapchat stories showing what
they ate that day and YouTube “vlogs” highlighting their nightly routines. Subscribing is a fun escape –
the same reason reality tv or cheesy romance novels are popular. Videos featuring fashion tips or
vacation vlogs may not be the most intellectually stimulating, but they have proven to be wildly
successful amongst today’s teens, with many of today’s internet stars gaining millions of views and
followers every day. Due to their fans’ unwavering support, an influencer’s power is unfathomable, with
a generation of adolescents seeking to emulate the lives of their favorite online celebrities. However,
with great power comes great responsibility, an idea that many of today’s online influencers fail to fully
comprehend.