Andrew Lefler

Mrs. Thomas
3/30/2016
UWRT 1102 004
Growing Up Wired: Social Networking Sites and Adolescent Psychosocial Development

Spies, Shapiro L. A, and Gayla Margolin. "Growing Up Wired: Social Networking Sites and
Adolescent Psychosocial Development." Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review.
17.1 (2014): 1-18. Print.

The authors Shapiro and Margolin are both known for their psychological work alongside
their PhDs. This article discusses the usage of Social Networking Sites, and how people interact
with them on a daily basis. The evolution of these sites has increased exponentially, as now,
Social Networking Sites is the primary form of communication among the younger generation

(Spies 1). The authors discuss some of the reasons for sites such as Facebook for being such a
big social media site as individuals are able to stay in touch with friends, make plans, get to
know people better, and present oneself to others.
The authors begin the piece with an abstract about what the entire piece will be
discussing. This includes issues with the Socials Networking Sites, why individuals have them
today, and how they have evolved over time. Spies and Margolin opened up the piece with a
they say, I say format by saying, Although computers initially were developed for adults,
adolescents have fully embraced these technologies for their own social purposes and typically
are the family experts on how to use electronic media and social networking sites (1). This
allows for the authors to open up the topic of discussion of what the technology was supposed to
be used for. The authors argue how the younger generation has taken over the use of
Smartphones and wireless internet for social media for their own personal usage.

Other Quotes:

Moreover, despite the terms of service of Facebook restricting its use to those age 13 or

older, it is estimated that 7.5 million younger children also have accounts (Spies 2).

Extreme degrees of Internet and electronic media use are increasingly recognized as

Internet addiction, a disorder with symptoms that are analogous to those of substance use and
gambling disorders (Spies 3).

Those adolescents who have strong offline social skills also appear to have more online

connections and contacts (Spies 9).

Analysis:
After analyzing this piece, I feel this was great insight on how the work of social media
has affected the lives of millions globally with the increase to Smartphones. I thought this piece
was an easy read with the information given and I will be able to use this information to help
create my thesis paper on the impact of Smartphones on peoples lives. I have learned a lot
about the use of Social Networking Sites and how they have impacted society and how people
are affected both positively and negatively. I would recommend this article to anyone
referencing an argument on ways social media would affect someones life and the evolution is
has had on the public.