Teens flee from Facebook

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The use of social media is unpredictable. A few years ago, Facebook seemed to monopolize the future of social interactions. Today a survey reaffirms our belief that young people are moving away from this platform and is opting for more audiovisual and perhaps less intrusive alternatives such as YouTube and Instagram.

On this subject, Pew Research Center published the results of its survey Teens, Social Media & Technology 2018. It highlights the excessive use that teens make of digital devices: 95% say they have access to a Smartphone and 45% say they are online constantly.

YouTube is the new king

The survey of teenagers between 13 and 17 years old revealed that 85% use YouTube, 72% Instagram, 69% Snapchat and 51% Facebook. Likewise, the interviewees stated that 32% use YouTube more often, while only 10% answered that Facebook is their preferred social media platform.

The results of 2015 showed a completely different story; 71% of teens used Facebook and 41% of them used it constantly (YouTube was not included in the study).

Impact of social media

On social media impact, 31% of young people answered that it has a positive influence on their lives, 24% stated that it is negative, while 45% doubt if the effect on their life is good or bad. Of the respondents who answered that it has positive effects, most mentioned that social media platforms connect them with their family and friends. Of those who answered negatively, they think that interactions in these platforms promote bullying and spreading rumors.

The future of Facebook is not encouraging. At least in the US is losing the battle to monopolize the time of young people. On the other hand, it is worth evaluating the abuse of the consumption of social platforms and the harmful effects that these could cause.

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