Daily, young individuals devote approximately thirty minutes to perusing news updates
In a recent study titled "Children, Young People and Media: (Dis)Connected Lives?", researchers explored the media practices of Portuguese young people aged 11 to 19. The study, inspired by the book of the same name, revealed some interesting insights into the ways these young individuals engage with social media.
The most common uses of social media among the participants include watching videos, social interaction, and content creation. YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat are the platforms most commonly used by the youth, with daily engagement being particularly high on YouTube (73% daily use) and TikTok (57% daily use).
When it comes to gender differences, TikTok has a slight male majority among users (53.3% male), but overall usage patterns between males and females among teens are similar in terms of frequency and platform preference. Pew Research data does not show dramatic gender usage differences for platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, or Snapchat among teens, but indicates that young people across genders are heavily engaged in video consumption, social communication, and entertainment.
The study found that social media has been assuming a central role in media practices, particularly among younger generations. On average, participants spent four hours a day on their cell phones, with interaction with friends and colleagues standing out as a common use of social media. Reading news appears to be a concern for a minority of the sample.
Participants spent one hour a day listening to music, one hour a day playing video games, and two hours a day watching television. The production and posting of photos and videos are also common uses of social media, with girls being the main producers of content, especially on TikTok and Instagram.
Boys primarily use social media to watch videos related to video games and sports. Reading books and reading/watching or listening to the news are activities to which the sample devotes almost no time. Listening to the radio, podcasts, and reading newspapers in print or online are virtually ignored by the participants.
The most common uses of social media are viewing audiovisual content related to personal interests and surveillance practices. Searching for information, news, and learning is primarily a practice mentioned by 12th-grade students, who primarily use the social media platform X to access news.
As the study concludes, Portuguese young people are increasingly using social media platforms, developing their repertoires according to the roles and meanings they attribute to each network. The insights from this study provide valuable information for educators, parents, and policymakers seeking to understand and guide the media habits of the younger generation.
[1] Pew Research Center. (2023). Teens, Social Media & Technology Overview 2023. [online] Available at: https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2023/03/07/teens-social-media-technology-2023/
[2] Ofcom. (2022). Children and Parents: Media Use and Attitudes Report 2022. [online] Available at: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/research-and-data/media-use-and-attitudes/childrens-media-literacy/children-and-parents-media-use-and-attitudes
[4] TikTok. (2022). TikTok Community Report. [online] Available at: https://newsroom.tiktok.com/en-us/tiktok-community-report
- Despite spending four hours daily on their cell phones, the Portuguese young participants in the study indicated that reading news is a concern for a minority, with a longer time spent watching television, listening to music, and playing video games.
- Girls among the participants were found to be the main producers of content on social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram, while boys prefer watching videos related to video games and sports.
- The study suggests that Portuguese young people are gravitating towards social media platforms for viewing audiovisual content related to personal interests and surveillance practices, with searching for information, news, and learning primarily mentioned by 12th-grade students who primarily use the social media platform X for news access.
- Educators, parents, and policymakers seeking to understand and navigate the media habits of the younger generation will find the insights from this study valuable, as it demonstrates how Portuguese young people are adapting their use of social media networks based on the roles and meanings they attribute to each platform.
