The purpose of this research is to explore the adversities among young people that arise as
a result of modern technology. Modern technology is supposed to bring many positive features
and facilitations to life, which is why its use is becoming more and more widespread in our
daily lives. Adolescents growing up in the digital age are intertwined with technology in their
lives from an early age. Today, the wider social environment is also pushing them towards a
constant need to use technology, and they cannot avoid it, even if they might wish to. The period
of adolescence is a time of many changes in the cognitive, emotional, psychological and
physical domains of the individual. It is a crucial period for young people as they move into
the world of adulthood, where they learn to take responsibility, create life goals and place
themselves as individuals in the context of society. The period therefore brings many changes
which can be very challenging for young people. The integration of technology into their lives
does not only offer positive facilitations, but also has consequences for them in various areas
of their lives. In my thesis I have explored these negative consequences in the context of
hardship. I see the importance of this research in the fact that our lives will become more and
more intertwined with technological advances year by year. Thus, as social workers, we need
to take a broader view, namely how the use of technology will affect the individual in society,
or as in my research case, the younger generation.
The research consists of a theoretical introduction and a research section. In the theoretical
introduction, I first introduce the period of adolescence, describing it on the basis of definitions
by various authors. In the second part, I focus on the field of technology, where I present in
more detail computer games and social networks. The third strand of the theory describes the
different areas of distress: mental, social, emotional, physical and educational distress. In the
last part, I focus on social work in the helping process, where I explore approaches to working
with young people in distress. In the research part, I interviewed eight of the participating
adolescents, exploring the interconnectedness of their everyday lives with technology. The data
was collected through a semi-standardised interview, in which I used the interview guidelines
as a measuring instrument. After the qualitative analysis of the data, the results and discussion
were written up, followed by conclusions and suggestions. I found that playing computer games
among young people is associated with their mental health, with young people experiencing
stress and aggressive outbursts. At the same time, computer games allow young people to
escape from the real world. Technology interferes with their interpersonal relationships, and
the ability to communicate in real time was highlighted as an advantage. At the same time, it
would be preferable if technology were not present in society, as it offers an unsatisfactory way
of socialising. In the context of self-esteem, young people use social networks to monitor
content that has a positive impact on their lives. Young people cite learning for education,
getting ideas to work on themselves, learning motivation, discipline as reasons for following
content. Technology has a negative impact on young people's physical health. The use of
devices makes young people feel tired, nervous, fed up and unwell. They also report pain in
their arms and back, headaches and eye problems. The integration of technology in education
offers young people advice on how to learn, the possibility to facilitate learning and to learn
with friends. On the negative side, they pointed out that they relate more to technology, that
they do not listen at school, do not think with their heads and give less importance to education.
|
