section_path: Culture/Media/Social networking
section_name: Social networking
paragraph_text: Social networking
  
  In the 2000s, social networking sites proliferated and a high proportion of adolescents used them. As of 2012, 73% of 12–17 year olds reported having at least one social networking profile; two-thirds (68%) of teens texted every day, half (51%) visited social networking sites daily, and 11% sent or received tweets at least once every day. More than a third (34%) of teens visited their main social networking site several times a day. One in four (23%) teens were "heavy" social media users, meaning they used at least two different types of social media each and every day.
  
  Although research has been inconclusive, some findings have indicated that electronic communication negatively affects adolescents' social development, replaces face-to-face communication, impairs their social skills, and can sometimes lead to unsafe interaction with strangers. A 2015 review reported that "adolescents lack awareness of strategies to cope with cyberbullying, which has been consistently associated with an increased likelihood of depression." Furthermore, in 2020, 32% of adolescent girls that use Instagram reported feeling worse about their body image after using the platform. Studies have shown differences in the ways the internet negatively impacts adolescents' social functioning. Online socializing tends to make girls particularly vulnerable, while socializing in Internet cafés seems only to affect boys' academic achievement. However, other research suggests that Internet communication brings friends closer and is beneficial for socially anxious teens, who find it easier to interact socially online.