Video Game Addiction and Teenagers: Understanding The Allure

Teenagers have a big job to do. They have to cement their identity, gain a realistic sense of their power to make changes in their life and create a social support network where they are valued, accepted and feel like they belong to. In short they have to grow up feeling good about who they are and what they can do with their lives. However, our world is not perfect and sometimes these challenges are more than teenagers can bear. All sorts of things can go wrong with these goals that are so necessary to a being a well-adjusted and happy adult. When this happens teenagers experience themselves as depleted and long for meaning and satisfaction in their lives. This is usually what’s going on in a life of a teenager when they become addicted to video games.

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The Steubenville Rape Video, Alcohol and Teenagers

Michael Nodianos really messed up. He is the teenager in the video recently released by the hacktavist group Anonymous shown joking about an incident of rape allegedly perpetrated by his fellow high school football teammates in Steubenville, Ohio. The language and attitude in the video is highly disturbing and offensive.

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Facebook, Twitter, Social Media and Teenagers

The rise of social media has transformed the way people around the world communicate, stay in touch, and learn. Much like social revolutions of the past young people such as teenagers are the most likely group to embrace change and pave the way for the future, while the rest of us struggle to keep up to the frantic pace of change. Today’s adolescents will have never know a world without Facebook or Twitter. On the other hand, adults are still playing catch up and reminiscing of simpler times. Social media platform such Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram bring with them exciting possibilities and potential dangers, especially for adolescents. The ability to stay involved in the life of a dear friend who has moved away through Facebook may lessen the emotional blow of having your friend move away. On the other hand, social media has created a new wave of privacy concerns that teens may overlook.

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