Today, it’s pretty evident that Technology has changed the lifestyle of so many people in the society and the world as a whole. Well, if you take a closer look at the situation, the most people who have been impacted by technology are teenagers. The teens of the 21st century spend most of their time on smartphones, computers and other devices.

It’s pretty obvious that every home in today’s society has one form of technology or the other, and this has made it very easy for teens to have easy access to different kinds of devices. Well, the big question is “Has technology made teenagers Dependent or independent?” Now, the first thing that may strike your mind is a “BIG YES, ” but we can’t just jump to this conclusion.

Today, people use technology for different activities, but the most common use for teens would be communicating and interacting with friends. The impact of Social Media on teens is evident as its very easy to see most of their faces buried in their smartphone for long hours. Moreover, there’s also a link between social media and self-esteem in the life of teenagers as most of them happened to have higher self-esteem by developing their communication skills via the use of platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Whatsapp.

There’s no better way to answer this question other than getting direct answers from teenagers themselves. Right now we’re going to feature some thoughts of users on Quora so we can see if there is truly a dependence on technology and an impact of social media on youth.

Preparation for the “real” world

Here’s what a user known as Caroline Plowe has to say:

“Both.

I am independent thanks to technology because…

• I can call an Uber and go wherever I want.

• I have access to all the information I could ever want. No more trips to the library or awkward conversations with parents.

• It’s easier to read all kinds of news which prepare me for the “real world.”

• I can stay connected with long-distance friends without having to walk all the way down my driveway to my mailbox.

• I have the world of entertainment at my fingertips; I don’t need to drive to the movie theater or go into the dreaded outdoors. (Just kidding – I love hiking and camping.)

At the same time, technology makes me dependent because…

• My parents are the ones who pay my phone bills.

• I rely on technology for many trivial tasks, and if I lose technology, I won’t be able to do those tasks.

(e.g., conducting proper research, looking up the weather to pick out my outfit for the day, finding writing prompts on a fantastic website that rhymes with Flora…)

• I have arguably lost the ability to make my own fun.

• I don’t need to think to solve a problem; I can just look it up.

• Technology has changed all of our lives for better and for worse.”

Can’t go more than a day without a smartphone

Another user known as Arup Mistry also adds;

“Both. More dependent than independent.

Most of us depend on it to basically stay connected to others. And in the major cities, technology seems like the only way to stay connected to others. Being in school right now, its hard to meet up at a coffee shop and chat. So phones help us with that.

I say dependent because, like me, most of my peers won’t be able to go for more than a day without a phone or a computer. And with so much happening around the world within seconds, you feel like you stopped in time without technology.

And you can argue that there is so much to do out there. But from my point of view, I don’t really see much to do, especially in cities. And then most of us teenagers being in school all day and then coming back home with mountains of homework, you don’t really feel like leaving your blanket after a tired day. So I guess our only form of entertainment is technology.

Now independent because again, we rely on the Internet for everything. Want to get from point A to B? Your phone has a map of the world. Need pictures to be taken? Sure, a smartphone is always there(that is if you own a phone). Need to make videos or songs? There are hundreds of software’s to download and make content. Now, this isn’t bad at all, considering many teenagers have their own Youtube or Instagram pages making big bucks, thus being more independent.”

Conclusion

Well, the debate goes on and on. With all that has been said, we can conclude that technology has made teenagers both dependent and independent in many ways than one. If you ask me, I’ll say today’s 21st-century teens are more dependent on technology when it comes to the use of social media or finding answers to questions that pop into their minds at every point in time.

So what do you think? Do you feel technology has made teens more dependent or independent?