Research Proposal

The Research Proposal on
The Impact of Using Social Media on Younger Generation

By Anjali Aravinth
BSc (Hons) Software Engineering

Dr. Chamila Amarathunga
Cardiff Metropolitan University, UK
ICBT Campus
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The Impact of Using Social Media on
Younger Generation
CONTENTS
1. ABSTRACT
2. INTRODUCTION
3. RESEARCH PROBLEM
4. RESEARCH QUESTIONS
5. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
6. LITERATURE REVIEW
7. CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
8. METHODOLOGY
9. DATA PRESENTATION AND FINDINGS
10. DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION
11. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMANDATIONS
12. REFERENCES
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ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION
By now, Social media is seen by many young people as the future. Through social media, people from all
over the world may connect. Unfortunately, when using it, both advantages and disadvantages can arise. So,
since the young generation is already exposed to social media and can easily access it, this research proposal
points out the positive and negative effects of social media on the young generation. Most of the teenagers
use at least one of the main five social media platforms more frequently several times per day. When
considering about the mainly used social media networks, TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat, Instergram,
YouTube, etc. stand out. But not every teenager is impacted by social media in the same way. Many
researchers found that social media created negative as well as positive impacts on youngers.
Social media is, on the one hand, the greatest means to engage with people and the finest way to keep the
next generation informed. Through social media, we can see the entire world through new technology. And
also through social media, young people as well as children can gain many valuable benefits and it helps
them to improve their knowledge and gaining new knowledge on subjects that they’re unfamiliar with.
However, social media is the best platform to connect people and create effective connections. But, Social
media has the both pros and cons. For many teens, social media plays a significant role in their everyday
lives. Therefore, they spend their time with its in isolation and thus they face mental health problems like
anxiety and depression.
Accordingly, this research proposal determines the both pros and cons of social media on younger generation
and also how it affects on their behavior and development in psychologically as well as positively with a
main shift of focus on the educational impacts and academic performance.
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RESEARCH PROBLEM
How does social media effects on younger people's behavior and development?
Younger generations' behavior and development are impacted by social media, both positively and
negatively. When considering about the positive impacts, social media gives users access to knowledge and
connections and they can use social media for entertaining purposes, social connections to gain validation,
opinions from others, professional development and many more.
When considering about the negative impacts, social media has affect them psychologically in their
academic performance and it can be resulting mental health problems and it will lead towards community
support negative impacts like addiction, insomnia, social isolation and health issues and many more.
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
 What are the primary motivations for using social media by youth?
Young people can use social media for many causes, like online researches, entertainment, personal
utility, lifestyle patterns and etc. These factors were positively related to user’s time spent,
experiences and level of satisfaction with social media.
 How does social media affect the mental health and self - esteem of young users?
This is a crucial point, because over usage of social media can resulting mental health problems like
stress, depression, anxiety and so on, it will result in law self-esteem and confidence which will result
in social isolation as mentioned before.
 What are the educational impacts of social media for learning and acquiring knowledge and
academic performance?
Social media significantly impacts education by providing youngers as well as students with valuable
resources, fostering communication and teaching digital skills. And also Younger generation can use
this to gain knowledge on subjects that they’re unfamiliar with or to improve their knowledge on
subjects that they already know.
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RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
 To identify the primary motivations for using social media by younger generation.
When identify the primary reasons and patterns of social media usage among young people, the
younger generation mostly use social media for many purposes. And also social media lets teens
create online identities, chat with others, build social networks, social connections to gain validation,
developing friendships and establishing social status by being “in the know”. When a younger feels
loneliness or disengaged from their family or friends, they may turn to these social media platforms
for feeling better. This networks can offer young people assistance from individuals who share
similar interests or life experiences.
 To assess the effects of social media on the mental health and self - esteem of young users.
When assess the psychological and emotional impacts of social media use on the youngers, this will
lead towards community support negative impacts like addiction, insomnia, health issues and so on.
And also Heavy social media use has been strongly linked to a higher risk of sadness, anxiety,
loneliness, self-harm, and even suicidal ideation, according to numerous research. Furthermore,
several research came to the conclusion that mental health issues like anxiety, depression, and low
self-esteem could be brought on by excessive internet use and also overuse of the internet causes
abnormal behaviors that are harmful to the users.
 To investigate the effects of social media on learning and acquiring knowledge and academic
performance.
When investigate the effect of social media on learning behaviors and acquiring knowledge and
academic performance, this promotes active learning with digital education and self - improvement.
It can be exposed towards collaborative learning, which will give a positive output but also it can
result in distraction and time managements issues, if not utilized properly.
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CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
Moderating Variable
 Parental Monitoring
 Peer Influence
 Internet Literacy
Independent Variable Dependent Variable
Primary Motivations Behavioral Changes :

for Social Media Use :
 Offline behavior
Mediating Variable
 Social Interaction modifications :
 Entertainment (e.g., social skills )
Psychology Factors :
 Educational  Online behavior
 Mental Health adaptations :
Purposes
 Self - esteem (e.g., digital citizenship)
Social Media Usage

Educational Impacts: Development Outcomes:
Patterns :
 Cognitive
 Learning
 Frequency of use Development:
outcomes
 Duration of Use Attention span
 Academic
 Types of platforms Performance
Critical thinking
used  Social Development:
Peer relationships
Family dynamics
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The Research Proposal on

The Impact of Using Social Media on Younger Generation

BSc (Hons) Software Engineering

9. DATA PRESENTATION AND FINDINGS

10. DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION

11. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMANDATIONS

Independent Variable Dependent Variable

Primary Motivations Behavioral Changes :

Social Media Usage

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