Young people in the digital trap: Media use to Corona worrying!
Young people in the digital trap: Media use to Corona worrying!
Wien, Österreich - On April 6, 2025, the premiere of the "Wiener Knowledge" podcast took place under the direction of Elisabeth Oberzaucher. The sociologist Ulrike Zartler from the University of Vienna was a guest and discussed the far-reaching consequences of Corona pandemic to young people and their families. During her research, Zartler accompanied 98 families to shed light on the social injustices that manifested themselves during the pandeme -related isolation. A central topic was the protection of young people against the negative effects of social media, which played a central role, especially during pandemic. The podcast is available on common platforms and invites you to further discussions about the current situation, which is challenging for many families. Krone reported.
The importance of social media for children and adolescents has changed dramatically in recent years. A current DAK study entitled "Without End Online?!" shows that over 1 million adolescents in Germany have risky or even pathological media consumption. The percentage of 10- to 17-year-olds who use social media risky or pathologically is now over 25%. It is alarming that 4.7% of those surveyed are considered addicted, which corresponds to a total of 1.3 million affected people. These figures illustrate the dangers associated with excessive use of digital media. Tagesschau informs that the proportion of problematic social media use in the age group was only 11.4% before the pandemic. Between 2019 and 2024, however, this proportion increased by alarming 126%.
The dramatic effects of media use
The average service life on social media is now 157 minutes a day, which is about half an hour more than before pandemic. Prof. Rainer Thomasius warns that we are looking forward to a “tsunami of addiction disorders” among young people. The high media use often leads to the neglect of other areas of life, which can have a negative impact on academic achievements and personal relationships.
boys are more affected, with 6% pathological media use compared to 3.2% in girls. This could be related to the fact that girls often have more pronounced social skills during puberty. In addition, 12% of children and adolescents show problematic behavior in computer games, while 3.4% of those surveyed are classified as pathologically. The use of streaming services also has 16% of problematic users and 2.6% dependent worrying numbers.
The influence of pandemic on the usage behavior
The pandeme -related isolation has meant that young people use digital media more as a distraction and entertainment. Isolation, boredom and the lack of alternatives are the main reasons for increased media use. Data show that 24.5% of the children and adolescents surveyed show risky usage behavior and 6.5% have pathological behavior. While the usage times of social media decreased slightly in 2023, these are still greatly increased compared to the times before pandemic, which illustrates the persistent problem. DetailsOrt Wien, Österreich Quellen
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