Traditional vs social media: A phenomenology of influences on political ideological development in adolescents

Increased political polarization in the United States has been examined in both Congress and the general adult populous, but has rarely been investigated in adolescent interactions. Blame for partisanship has landed on both traditional and social media however, the lack of regulation surrounding social media makes it unprecedented territory in its affect on political polarization. The age group that generally uses social media for news and political content is primarily adolescents, meaning the effects of social media are both unknown and mainly impacting those whose political ideas are still in the developmental stage. The goal in my inquiries was to analyze the difference between social media and traditional media’s effect on teen Political Ideological Development (PID) the progression of internalized biases and hostility in adolescents. My findings show that current political hostility in the classroom is higher than any previous generation interviewed. Accounts of social sorting, stereotyping, and perceived political hostility show the creation of an adverse learning setting. By comparing traditional media’s effect on teen’s PID from previous generations to current teen’s PID, I have concluded that social media is creating enough of an impact on PID to alter our cycle of polarization severely, even if it has not been definitively shown yet. Both teens and teachers surveyed were in support of the implementation of “social media interpretation” education in the social studies curriculum. Additional proposed solutions all urged administrative intervention on political disrespect and hostility in what is meant to be in a safe and controlled learning environment. Through expansion of my research and awareness of posts and discourse, it may be possible to curb the negative effects and emphasize the positive aspects of social media use.