[Impacts of computer- and media usage on the personality development of children and young people]

Abstract

The psychosocial development of children and the youth today is embedded in a media society. Socialization is understood as an interaction between the individual and its environment. Media are used to accomplish developmental tasks and media literacy has become a developmental task in itself. The presence of media in all social subsystems of every day life alters the general socialization processes, like the integration into peergroups or the detaching from the parents. Media can play the role of resources or the role of risk factors for the development. Empirical research shows that children's access to media is more and more enhanced and an increasing amount of time is spent with screen media. Media socialization of the young people takes on the mode of self education, but children are dependent on adults to prevent negative media effects such as Internet addiction. If media usage is part of an environment which is adequat for children's wellbeeing, the psychosocial development will not be affected negatively by the media.