I am personally challenged with the amount of time that I spend on my phone. I truly never used to be someone who would be on their phone for hours on end, however being in quarantine and general isolation has definitely switched this narrative. It seems that my screen time…

I wouldn’t say that I’m a gaming expert by any means. However, I have been surrounded by the gaming world since I was younger. My older brother, now in his mid-twenties, plans time in his day to play Valorant, God of War, or The Last of Us (Part 1 and…

Among others, there are two main reasons why internet trolling happens: Anonymity Lack of direct consequence According to Rainie, Anderson, and Albright, anonymity “…is an element that…[enables] bad behavior and [facilitates] “uncivil discourse” in shared online spaces (Rainie, Anderson, & Albright, 2017). This idea is especially present in social media…

COVID-19 has heightened individuals’ digital use. Social distancing guidelines have allowed users to experiment with new ways to socialize with peers, co-workers, and family members. Connecting through a screen is more of a norm than ever before, as eliminating face-to-face contact is required to avoid the spread of the virus…

Online activism is the use of the internet and digital devices to bring awareness and/or change to social, political, etc. issues. Social media has especially been a tool where digital activism has taken place. It seems that many celebrities, politicians, organizations, and even members of local communities have turned to…

Internet privacy is a complex issue. First, the concept of privacy truly depends on one’s background: What is discerned as a high risk privacy disclosure for one person might not be perceived as a risk for another individual. Second, even with privacy controls, privacy is not guaranteed. This idea was…

Are online contexts important for identity development? Wängqvist and Frisén provide great insight about identity development in online contexts. Specifically, they argue that the lack of geographical proximity, the building of online-relationships, and the potential absence of parental control allow for adolescents to openly explore their identity online (Wängqvist & Frisén, 2016). I believe that this argument…

After both reading and watching the content from David White and Alison Le Cornu, I have concluded that I am in agreement with their ideologies surrounding the status of one’s internet use. White put it best when he argued that digital use should be observed with a “sliding scale” rather…