The Role of Social Media Influencers in the Lives of Children and Adolescents

Social Media and Influencers Have Their Benefits

Social media may have many benefits that children and adolescents can receive — as long as they use the platforms responsibly.

Children and teens who regularly engage in social media can benefit from enhanced communication, social connection, and technical skills. Influencers play a role beyond creating content made to just go viral.

Social media influencers provide positive social support for children dealing with problems or feelings of not fitting in. Social media stars can also help kids to express themselves more boldly. When influencers from various backgrounds, ethnicities, or sexual orientations proudly represent themselves across the internet, it gives children and adolescents someone to emulate. Representation is important for younger people to feel as though they belong.

Social media influencers can provide positive role models and mentorship through online content for some children and teens. Younger audiences might find comfort in browsing their favorite influencer’s social media feed when they’re feeling lost, confused, or unsure of themselves.

It’s important to note that some younger people might not have extraordinary home lives, either. While they can’t actively change their situation, they can find positive ways to cope with what they are experiencing, like watching social media stars online.

Some influencers realize that some of their younger followers might be struggling and even post inspirational and motivational content to show the support of their fans.

In general, following social media influencers can be a good thing for children and teens. Influencers can give you something to look forward to or motivate you to reach specific goals. Social media stars can also be very inspirational.

Adverse Effects of Social Media Influencers on Children and Adolescents

The social media influencers that children and adolescents follow vary in age, social status, and occupation. Although some influencers may have appropriate content for all ages, there are just as many who don’t.

Influencers create social media content that impacts children and adolescents in many ways. But part of the problem is recognizing who and what content younger people should be following. Controversial or suggestive posts are not suitable for all age groups.

The internet can influence children and adolescents to develop new social behaviors including social comparison, approval and feedback-seeking behavior, social conformity, self-enhancement, and even imitation. Results from increased internet browsing are not always positive.

Younger generations have much of their social and emotional development happening on the internet and smartphones, which can have adverse effects. Spending too much time on social media sites can lead to depressive symptoms for anyone, but especially for youth, who may not have as many coping skills in place.

As the role of social media influencers grows more prominent with time, more child psychologists stress the importance of social-emotional development that children should receive from family members and friends, instead of online strangers on social networking sites.

Sometimes, popular influencers can cause children and adolescents to experience feelings of inadequacy. A way to remedy this might be to teach younger generations that what they see on the internet is not always authentic or accurate.

Many things seen across the web are illusionary and fabricated. When younger generations understand this, they can filter out some of the negative emotions they can face from following famous stars.

Social Media Can Lead to Feelings of Inadequacy for Some Children and Teens

It’s a well-known fact that social media influencers have audiences made up of millions of people from all over the world, so when younger generations see these star’s “perfect” lives, they may feel inadequate about themselves.

Experts have found social comparison within social networks to cause negative emotional experiences such as depression and lead to poor cognitive performance in school work.

In addition, social comparison via social media might leave some teenagers feeling lonely or just plain sad whenever they compare their own lives to social media stars. Influencers constantly posting about seemingly fun social gatherings, vacations, or wealth can make someone of any age feel unworthy.

Researchers say that social comparisons go beyond social media and into the real world, leading to increased feelings of inferiority for children and teens. 

Social Media Can Be Addicting for Some Youth

Excessive social media and internet use can lead to severe problems in children and adolescents. When you look at how social media and influencers are such a massive part of our lives, it’s evident that too much time spent on the web can be concerning.

The developing phenomenon of FOMO (fear of missing out) in kids and teens is growing more prevalent every day. FOMO is explained as the fear of missing something while not browsing the web, and it is closely related to social media and internet addiction.

Although some internet-famous content creators are positive role models, many influencers might promote alcohol, drugs, nudity, and illegal activities. JustGoViral explores Instagram’s no nudity rule here.

Suppose that a child or teen is suffering from internet addiction and is following social media stars that encourage inappropriate behaviors for someone their age. In that case, there’s a chance that the child’s behavior will begin to change drastically. These negative changes in behavior can lead to poor grades in school, fighting with peers, problems at home, and much more.

What Parents and Guardians Can Do If Problems Occur

It’s not always necessary to cut out all forms of social media from your child’s life. However, it may be beneficial to limit a child’s social media use and monitor the social media accounts that your child is spending their time on.

Another suggestion would be to have a serious talk with your children about social media and influencers and to explain that things are not always what they seem. Teaching children that influencers are just regular people and not always someone to aspire to be like is key to helping them develop healthy internet browsing behaviors.

Parents or guardians can make a social media agreement to limit internet use by going through the list of social media influencers that a child follows.

In general, it may be beneficial to have children and teens turn off all social media notifications from their phones during certain hours of the day.

Limiting social media use can positively help children and teens observe the natural world and develop real-life communication and problem-solving skills.