Texting Is Wrecking Your Teenager's Mind, Destroying Their Thumbs, Killing Puppies, Etc.

from the doom-and-gloom dept

Tue, May 26th 2009 4:44pm — Carlo Longino

The New York Times says the growing use of texting among teenagers "is beginning to worry physicians and psychologists". Apparently all the texting kids do creates anxiety, keeps them from getting enough sleep, and causes repetitive stress injuries. Sure, texting could have some some negative impact on some kids, but like with so many things, for every citation of some horror texting causes, you can find studies touting texting's benefits, too. And finding one girl who texted so much it made her thumbs hurt really isn't a sign of an epidemic, either. It certainly makes for some good headlines, but is the rise of texting among teens really any different than the growth of any other technology, none of which seem to have killed us off yet?

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Filed Under: moral panic, teens, texting

19 Comments

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John Doe, 26 May 2009 @ 4:46pm

Think of the kids, damn it!
We should all be put in large rubber rooms for our own protection. Maybe they could pass a law? Or dozens of laws? I have no idea what we, the common people, would do without the government to protect us from oursevles?
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Anonymoose, 26 May 2009 @ 5:32pm

Isn't this just a recycled story from 2003?
"Texting. It's all the rage among kids these days".. I swear I see this same dopey story every couple of years. Er. Slow news day?
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Anonymous Coward, 26 May 2009 @ 6:09pm

Stories about the dire consequences from texting is ruining the credibility of those who create this drivel.
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Thomas, 26 May 2009 @ 6:21pm

But think of the children!
Make them wear mittens all the time. Sheesh.
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Anonymous Coward, 26 May 2009 @ 6:24pm

I hear texting is also making bloggers get stupider over time.
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Blatant Coward, 26 May 2009 @ 6:38pm

Texting! Oh noes!
In before teenager texting their dad about getting laid for the first time.

What?

Dang! Super Dang!
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daddyg33k, 26 May 2009 @ 7:09pm

On Texting...
When I look back into the late nineties, back when the wave of the future was the 2G phone, and the Nokia Bricksters roamed the Earth in the States...the other side of the planet (I.E. China/Japan) had already adopted SMS as the preferred medium of communications amongst the younger generation. This being said, with the Western Hemisphere trailing 10 years behind our Eastern neighbors wouldn't the damage of SMS already be evident if we a quick glance to the East? I am sure the tabloids are milking the hell out of this one... 'The dangers of the text message, are YOUR children safe??' Well my only point to make is this...if SMS was the next Whippet like problem with our youth, wouldn't the devastation already be measurable by looking at a society that was doing a decade ago what are doing today? Or did they already blame text messaging as the cause of SARS...
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Anonymous Coward, 26 May 2009 @ 7:24pm

They should sit at the computer all day and chat like we did in the 90s. Young whipper snappers!
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Dave M, 26 May 2009 @ 7:36pm

Yeah... Do any of these teenagers have parents?
Once again, the media reports on some horror technology is unleashing on the children. Once again, proper parenting would solve the problem. Apparently the majority of humans in society today are simply incapable of behaving responsibly.
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Anonymous Coward, 26 May 2009 @ 7:37pm

Re:
But then there would be a broken finger to point
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NullOp, 26 May 2009 @ 7:58pm

Texting
The worst injury caused by texting is your judgement is impared and you keep texting and texting and texting.....and then the dog start texting back and, boy, some of the ideas are weird but somehow make sense. Ya' know?
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Joe, 26 May 2009 @ 8:53pm

Re: Yeah... Do any of these teenagers have parents?
Amen on that one. Same for all the parents that think things like video games, music, and TV are ruining our childrens' lives. Take some responsibility and stop blaming other for your own faults.
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Phread, 26 May 2009 @ 9:38pm

In Other news,
In other news, physicians and psychologists incomes down by 30% in bad economy.
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Anonymous Coward, 26 May 2009 @ 10:43pm

Re:
You've got to be kidding me.
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MadJo (profile), 27 May 2009 @ 1:27am

And Rock 'n Roll was encouraging devil worshipping
Seriously, don't these people learn from their own f-ing past?
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Anonymous Coward, 27 May 2009 @ 7:21am

Re: But think of the children!
No, that wouldn't work. Mittens still have thumbs silly wabbit.
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Silver Fang (profile), 29 May 2009 @ 10:21am

Old as the hills
Ranting and raving over new technology and trends is nothing new. In the early 1900s, phonographs and movies were the target, in the 40s, it was comic books, since the 50s TV has been a favorite target and since the 1990s, the Internet and so on.

Every 20 or so years, a new technology will be embrace by young people and eschewed and reviled by their elders. Even Plato ranted and raved about corrupt youth in ancient Athens.

It's as old as the hills!
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CarleyyJayy., 17 Mar 2010 @ 10:23am

texting.
well i'd like all of you to know i am a freshman at MGM and i text non stop and i still have straight a's and yes i do have parents thank you. it's not making us dumb, or stupid or anything. we text to communicate. and i'm lazy i get about 9 hours of sleep and feel amazing!! and i wake up many times at night to reply back to my messges. so all im trying to say is stop freaking out just 'cause we like to text a lot at least we aren't jabbering on the phone in our rooms all day. or better yet in the kitchen or living room where you all have to listen to us!!
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CarleyyJayy., 17 Mar 2010 @ 10:27am

texting.
and i have very many friends who make just as good of grades that do the same. the kids who are failing because of it just don't wanna do their work and would rather text. so don't put all of us into one category.
kk? thankss goodbye!!
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