Digital Youth—The Role of Media in Development

Youth around the world are fittingly described as digital natives because of their comfort and skill with technological hardware and content. Recent studies indicate that an overwhelming majority of children and teenagers use the Internet, cell phones, and other mobile devices. Equipped with familiarity and unprecedented access, it is no wonder that adolescents consume, create, and share copious amounts of content. But is there a cost?Digital Youth: The Role of Media in Development recognizes the important role of digital tools in the lives of teenagers and presents both the risks and benefits of these new interactive technologies. From social networking to instant messaging to text messaging, the authors create an informative and relevant guidebook that goes beyond description to include developmental theory and implications. Also woven throughout the book is an international sensitivity and understanding that clarifies how, despite the widespread popularity of digital communication, technology use varies between groups globally.Other specific topics addressed include:Sexuality on the Internet.Online identity and self-presentation.Morality, ethics, and civic engagement.Technology and health.Violence, cyberbullying, and victimization.Excessive Internet use and addictive behavior. This comprehensive volume is a must-have reference for researchers, clinicians, and graduate students across such disciplines as developmental/clinical child/school psychology, social psychology, media psychology, medical and allied health professions, education, and social work.

Kaveri Subrahmanyam is a Professor of Psychology at California State University, Los Angeles and the Associate Director of the Children’s Digital Media Center @ Los Angeles. She received her Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from UCLA in 1993. She uses developmental theory to understand young people’s interactions with digital media. Using both quantitative and qualitative techniques, she has studied young people’s digital worlds, including video games, chat rooms, blogs, and social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook. She has published several research articles on youth and digital media and has co-edited a special issue on social networking for the Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology (2008).David Smahel is an Associate Professor on the Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk University - Czech Republic. He received his Ph.D. in social psychology in 2003. His main interests are adolescents and their behavior on the Internet. David’s research focuses on online risks, identity development and its consequences in the virtual world, online communication, virtual romantic relationships and friendships, as well as addictive behavior on the Internet. He is the project head of the "World Internet Project: the Czech Republic", which is a part of the identically titled worldwide project. David is currently editor of “Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace”.