Supporting the Argument: Plan and Outline

Directions: There are four parts to this assignment. Please read the instructions carefully.

Part 1: Choose a topic from the following list:

● Social media: Some people claim that frequent use of social media can have negative effects on
teenagers who may already exhibit addictive behaviors or mental health disorders. Should social
media use be restricted for all teens? What about teenagers who show no signs of disorders?

Part 2: In a complete sentence, state your position on your chosen issue. This will be your thesis.

● Social Media should be restricted for teens as it can worsen already existing addictive behaviors
and mental health disorders and can cause an array of disorders for those who don't already
have one.

How does this source

Quotations from the
SOURCE TITLE and source to support
AUTHOR your claim
help you connect your
claim (position) to the
data (evidence)?
Explain how the
evidence strengthens
your position. Full MLA Citation

1.How Using Social There’s no question
Media Affects Teenager kids are missing out on
very critical social skills.
Writer: Rachel Ehmke In a way, texting and
online
communicating—it’s not
like it creates a
Clinical Experts:
nonverbal learning
Catherine Steiner-Adair,
disability, but it puts
EdD , Donna Wick,
everybody in a
Ed.D
nonverbal disabled
context, where body
language, facial
expression, and even
the smallest kinds of
vocal reactions are
rendered invisible.
The evidence Ehmke, Rachel, et al.
strengthens my position “How Using Social
as it backs up the logic Media Affects
behind how social Teenagers.” Child Mind
media takes away Institute, Child Mind
critical social skills from Institute, 10 Aug. 2023,
kids(teenagers) in childmind.org/article/ho
general, even those w-using-social-media-aff
without mental disorder. ects-teenagers/.
Furthermore, because
this is an opinion that
comes from someone
with authority in the field
of mental health and
children’s psychology, it
supports the thesis
better.
2. Associations between “We examined a large Factual evidence that Twenge, Jean M, and
screen time and lower (n = 40,337) national provides numbers W Keith Campbell.
psychological well-being random sample of 2- to support the thesis better “Associations between
among children and 17-year-old children and and gives the audience screen time and lower
adolescents: Evidence adolescents in the U.S. more to rely on. A clear psychological well-being
from a population-based in 2016 that included result from an controlled among children and
study comprehensive research strengthens adolescents: Evidence
measures of screen my argument from a population-based
Jean M Twenge time (including cell study.” Preventive
phones, computers, medicine reports vol. 12
Keith Campbell electronic devices, 271-283. 18 Oct. 2018,
electronic games, and doi:10.1016/j.pmedr.201
TV) and an array of 8.10.003
psychological well-being
measures. After 1 h/day
of use, more hours of
daily screen time were
associated with lower
psychological
well-being, including
less curiosity, lower
self-control, more
distractibility, more
difficulty making friends,
less emotional stability,
being more difficult to
care for, and inability to
finish tasks. Among 14-
to 17-year-olds, high
users of screens (7+
h/day vs. low users of 1
h/day) were more than
twice as likely to ever
have been diagnosed
with depression (RR
2.39, 95% CI 1.54,
3.70), ever diagnosed
with anxiety (RR 2.26,
 CI 1.59, 3.22), treated
by a mental health
professional (RR 2.22,
CI 1.62, 3.03) or have
taken medication for a
psychological or
behavioral issue (RR
2.99, CI 1.94, 4.62) in
the last 12 months”

3. “ limiting a group of Another Doheny, Kathleen.

students to only 30 researched-backed “Limiting Social Media
Limiting Social Media minutes of social media result that proves the Use in Youths Brings
Use in Youths Brings a day to see what effectiveness of social Challenges, Benefits.”
Challenges, Benefits happens. Two weeks media restriction. WebMD, WebMD, 26
into the study, the June 2023,
Kathleen Doheny students reported www.webmd.com/menta
improvement in l-health/news/20230626/
psychological well-being limiting-social-media-us
and other important e-in-youths-brings-chall
measures, including enges-benefits.
sleep quality, compared
to a control group
assigned to continue
using social media as
usual.”

4. In the study report, The fact that the Harness, Jane, et al.
Harness concluded: subjects that the “Youth insight about
Youth Insight About “Youth are aware of restriction would be social media effects on
Social Media Effects on ways in which social imposed are aware of well/ill-being and
Well/Ill-Being and media could be the negative impacts of self-modulating efforts.”
Self-Modulating Efforts negatively impacting the restriction shows the Journal of Adolescent
them and they have severity of the issue and Health, vol. 71, no. 3,
employed methods to shows that 3rd party 2022, pp. 324–333,
modulate their use restrictions may be https://doi.org/10.1016/j.
Jane Harness
because of this necessary. jadohealth.2022.04.011.
awareness.”
5. “significant reductions Another evidence that Hunt, M. G., Marx, R.,
in loneliness and backs up the Lipson, C., & Young, J.
No more FOMO: depression over three effectiveness of the (2018). No more FOMO:
Limiting social media weeks” restriction. The Limiting social media
decreases loneliness restriction showed decreases loneliness
and depression. impact over a short and depression. Journal
period of 3 weeks of Social and Clinical
Melissa G.Hunt Psychology, 37(10),
751–768.
https://doi.org/10.1521/j
scp.2018.37.10.751

6. “By restricting the Strengthens my “Social Media Addiction

amount of time teens argument against the in Teens and Young
PARADIGM spend interacting on counter augment that a Adults - Paradigm.”
TREATMENT social media, we help forced restriction may Mental Health
them prioritize real have a greater negative Treatment For Teens
social interaction with impact as it emphasizes and Young Adults,
their peers.” the necessity of a 3rd Paradigm Treatment, 5
party restriction June 2023,
paradigmtreatment.com/
teen-treatment/social-m
edia-addiction/#:~:text=
Helping%20Teens%20w
ith%20Social%20Media
%20Addiction%20at%2
0Paradigm&text=B
y%20restricting%20the
%20amount%20of,a%2
 0better%20sense%20of
%20self.

Part 4: Create an outline using the following template and your work in Parts 1, 2, and 3. Strategically
structure your argument and synthesize your research.

I. Introduction
A. How much does social media affect the mental health and addictive behaviors of
teenagers?
B. There has been a constant debate ever since teens started using social media about its
negative impacts and whether to force an restriction on them
C. Social Media should be restricted for teens as it can worsen already existing addictive
behaviors and mental health disorders and can cause an array of disorders for those who
don't already have one.
II. Argument (repeat this structure for as many paragraphs as you need to thoroughly support your
claim)
A. A social media restriction is necessary because the excessive use of social media leads
to the lack of critical social skills
B. “​​There’s no question kids are missing out on very critical social skills. In a way, texting
and online communicating—it’s not like it creates a nonverbal learning disability, but it
puts everybody in a nonverbal disabled context, where body language, facial expression,
and even the smallest kinds of vocal reactions are rendered invisible.”
i. Ehmke, Rachel, et al. “How Using Social Media Affects Teenagers.” Child Mind
Institute, Child Mind Institute, 10 Aug. 2023,
childmind.org/article/how-using-social-media-affects-teenagers/.
C. The evidence suggests that social media takes away critical social skills from
kids(teenagers) in general, even those without mental disorder, an expert opinion on the
cause.
III. Argument (repeat this structure for as many paragraphs as you need to thoroughly support your
claim)
A. A restriction on teenage social media use is necessary because studies has shown its
positive effects
B. “ limiting a group of students to only 30 minutes of social media a day to see what
happens. Two weeks into the study, the students reported improvement in psychological
well-being and other important measures, including sleep quality, compared to a control
group assigned to continue using social media as usual.”
i. Doheny, Kathleen. “Limiting Social Media Use in Youths Brings Challenges,
Benefits.” WebMD, WebMD, 26 June 2023,
www.webmd.com/mental-health/news/20230626/limiting-social-media-use-in-yout
hs-brings-challenges-benefits.
C. Such Research shows the effectiveness of social media restrictions in areas of mental
health and behavior.
IV. Argument (repeat this structure for as many paragraphs as you need to thoroughly support your
claim)
A. A restriction needs to be imposed because teens are aware of the negative impacts but
are unable to limit themselves.
B. In the study report, Harness concluded: “Youth are aware of ways in which social media
could be negatively impacting them and they have employed methods to modulate their
use because of this awareness.”
i. Harness, Jane, et al. “Youth insight about social media effects on well/ill-being
and self-modulating efforts.” Journal of Adolescent Health, vol. 71, no. 3, 2022,
pp. 324–333, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2022.04.011.
 C. Teens being aware of the negative impacts of social media is proven through the
research conducted. However they are still under the negative impacts knowingly and
this is a sign that proves the need for a third party to put restrictions on them.
V. Counterargument
A. A forceful Approach may not have a greater negative impact on the addiction problem.
B. An intervention by a 3rd party(teacher, parent, the law, etc) is necessary for teens who
are already addicted to social media. One addiction clinic says that “restricting the
amount of time teens spend interacting on social media” can help teens “build a better
sense of self.”
i. “Social Media Addiction in Teens and Young Adults - Paradigm.” Mental Health
Treatment For Teens and Young Adults, Paradigm Treatment, 5 June 2023,
paradigmtreatment.com/teen-treatment/social-media-addiction/#:~:text=Helping%
20Teens%20with%20Social%20Media%20Addiction%20at%20Paradigm&te
xt=By%20restricting%20the%20amount%20of,a%20better%20sense%20of%20s
elf.
VI. Conclusion
A. Social Media should be restricted for teens as it can worsen already existing addictive
behaviors and mental health disorders and can cause an array of disorders for those who
don't already have one.
B. Teens should be under social media restrictions because their mental health and
behaviors are affected heavily, the restrictions are effectives, and they are unable to limit
it themselves despite being aware of the issue.
C. Teens should have a reasonable restriction on how much time they could spend on social
media, set by authorities around them.