Teen girls find it harder to give up using social media platforms than teen boys. It is known that apps like TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook are designed to keep users engrossed in them for a long time. But, teen girls seem to be at the centre of the issue.
However, the difference between boys and girls in the matter is not that vast.
According to a survey by the Pew Research Center in the US, 58% of teen girls said it will be difficult to give up social media as opposed to 49% of teen boys. Overall, 54% of teens said it will be at least somewhat hard to give up social media and 46% said it will be at least somewhat easy.
Surprisingly, 25% of boys said it will be very easy to give up social media. And 15% of teen girls agreed with them.
Experts think that teens find it harder to give up social media as they grow up. About six in ten teenagers in the age group 15-17 say that quitting social media will be hard. Only a smaller share of 13-14-year-olds think the same.
When asked about the amount of time they spend on social media on an average day, 55% of the US teens said they spend about the right amount of time on these apps and sites. 36% of the teens said they spent too much time on social media. A vast majority of the teens have access to digital devices like smartphones (95%), gaming consoles (80%), and desktops or laptops (90%).
The survey also found that the number of teen internet users has gone from 92% to 97% during 2014-2022. The number of teens who admit to being almost constantly online has doubled since 2014-2015.