How Social Media Influences the Society? - Essay Sample

Introduction

We live in a world that has adopted the dependence on technology in various ways such as communication. In the pursuit for better, fast, and effective communication, social media presence takes the front seat in delivering the requirements the society seeks. Social media is a concept of developing fast and many people are addicted to it. As a user of social media, I can attest that it has both adverse and positive impacts on the society. In my research on the topic, I accessed several articles and data and the conclusion was similar in most articles and data. According to Ramasubbu (2015) and Hashim, Al-Sharqi, and Kutbi (2016), social media is heavily used by teenagers. Both articles offer similar data on the topic such as the heavy users, the negative and positive impacts, and ways in which social media can be used to benefit the society at large.

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On the similarities between the sources, there is evidence that a majority of the users of social media are teens. Moreover, teens use social media to learn and share content with peers. However, there are instances where social media promotes adverse behaviors such as cyberbullying hence leading to poor relations among the teens, their peers, and others in the society. On the differences, one article highlights the positive impacts of social media while the other tries to prove that social media can have adverse effects on teens. On further analysis, both articles highlight the negative and positive impacts of social media and both conclude by recommending that the older populace should offer additional care and guidance to teens on the use of social media. Social media can be an avenue where the teens can showcase their talents and learn new things but continued exposure can lead to poor performance in school and in the society.

During the week, learning has been effective and fast due to the knowledge I gained from information literacy. Accessing and reviewing different sources of information has enabled me to acquire skills I never had and I have been able to learn and understand various schools of thoughts. A scholarly source is appropriate to use when one uses information retrieved by another person but presented to the whole world to know. Failure to use appropriate scholarly sources can lead to misleading data that may have adverse consequences to the society. Popular sources such as a news article are appropriate when reviewing cases that have been researched adequately and the facts are supported by evidence such as statistics or time of occurrence. However, news articles should be supported by additional scholarly sources when used since data can be presented with a bias. Most articles reflect the views of the author which may differ from the accurate data on the ground.

Conclusion

The use of scholarly sources in an academic environment promotes honesty and mastery of information literacy skills. In my research, I used the skills learned in the past and I cannot fully state that this course enabled me to gain additional insights into the use of scholarly sources. However, it gave me an option to use my skills and gain valuable information on the influences of social media in the society. Peer-reviewed articles enhance one's reasoning and logic abilities hence broadening one's mindset on various topics. The course gave me a platform to become a better researcher and that will go a long way in my pursuit for better education and career.

References

Hashim, K., Al-Sharqi, L., & Kutbi, I. (2016). Perceptions of Social Media Impact on Social Behavior of Students. International Journal Of Virtual Communities And Social Networking, 8(2), 1-11. doi: 10.4018/ijvcsn.2016040101

Ramasubbu, S. (2015). Influence of Social Media on Teenagers. Retrieved from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/suren-ramasubbu/influence-of-social-media-on-teenagers_b_7427740.html