Internet Helps Teens Bond With Real-Life Pals

Hours spent in front of the computer might not be the worst thing for teens after all--especially when it comes to their social lives.

While findings from the early days of the Internet showed that teens mainly communicated online primarily with strangers with unfortunate results for their daily social lives (not to mention safety), new research on adolescent online social habits says things have changed. Kids today (almost all of whom are online in this country) are using instant messaging, email and social networking to stay in touch with everyday friends as online contacts have come to overlap almost completely with offline contacts. What's more, they're using the Internet to form stronger friendships and increase their social circles.

Studying almost 800 teens, researchers found a direct correlation between online communication and the closeness of "real life" friendships. It seems the Internet's lack of social feedback--potential smirks, raised eyebrows, and countless subtle cues--leaves teens feeling less inhibited about expressing their inner feelings, allowing them to better engage in the sort of self-disclosure that builds the bonds of friendship.

Surprisingly, it's not the socially awkward nerd who's finding solace in online communications however, but adolescents with already strong social connections, who are more likely to use online communications than lonely or socially anxious teens in what researchers label "the rich get richer" hypothesis. Socially anxious teens aren't losing out completely though, as they did report placing a higher premium on the ability to better express their feelings online, suggesting that the social lives of beauties and geeks alike all benefit from this medium in one way or another.

FULL-TEXT: Valkenburg, P. M., & Peter, J. Preadolescents' and adolescents' online communication and their closeness to friends. Developmental Psychology.
ABSTRACT: Preadolescents' and adolescents' online communication and their closeness to friends.

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