As identity development unfolds during adolescence, digital technologies increasingly shape not only how young people express themselves, but also how they feel. Technology influences well-being through the interplay of social, psychological, and technological factors. Social dynamics—such as group pressure, social norms—interact with psychological needs like distraction, validation, and emotional regulation. Technological design elements (infinite scroll, dopamine-driven feedback, multitasking, push notifications) amplify these effects, reinforcing compulsive behaviours and emotional fatigue. Phenomena like information overload, filter fatigue, and vamping reflect the cognitive cost of being constantly connected. Tools like fitness apps or mental health platforms can offer support, but also contribute to performance pressure and self-surveillance.
Contents
The Mind
This section highlights both the risks and opportunities of digital life, encouraging critical reflection on how online habits shape identity and self-worth. For educators and youth workers, it is essential to support young people in recognising addictive patterns, questioning platform design, and developing healthier digital routines. By unpacking everyday behaviours, we can foster digital self-awareness, emotional resilience, and more intentional engagement with technology—helping both youth and adults move from passive use to conscious navigation of the digital world.
“We update to remain the same”
Wendy Hui Kyong Chun (2016) critically examines how digital technologies encourage repetitive behaviours—updates, notifications, check-ins—not merely to inform, but to shape who we are and how we engage with others. She introduces a powerful paradox: we update to remain the same. Rather than progressing or transforming, much of our engagement with digital media reinforces sameness, routine, and the illusion of control. Chun argues that our digital selves are not simply expressed through technology—they are constituted by habitual use. Social media and other platforms work by repetition and reinforcement, forging identity through likes, shares, algorithmic recommendations, and constant updates. These mechanisms make our behaviours both predictable and governable, often limiting rather than expanding our choices. For young people, this means their sense of self is increasingly intertwined with platform logic, shaping aspirations, validation, and self-worth through metrics and visibility. The habit becomes a tool of governance.
Rather than controlling people through fear or rules, digital platforms subtly guide actions by turning practices into habits—habits that feel natural but are engineered. For educators and youth workers, this raises crucial questions: How much of youth behaviour online is truly autonomous? How can we help them reclaim agency over their digital routines?
As youth workers and educators, we often hear concerns about how young people relate to their devices: “they’re addicted,” “they can’t disconnect,” “they live online.” But while these comments may stem from genuine concern, they often rely on rhetoric that unfairly singles out youth—despite the fact that adults engage in the same behaviours with similar emotional responses. These are not “disorders” but behaviours that can become problematic under certain conditions—especially when linked to pressure, anxiety, or low self-esteem. The goal is not to pathologise youth, but to foster digital literacy, emotional awareness, and open dialogue about how everyone—young or old—navigates life in a connected world.
The Body
The body plays a central role in identity development, particularly during adolescence but not exclusively. Social media platforms play an ambivalent role: on one hand, they offer opportunities for self-expression and body diversity; on the other, they amplify narrow and idealised beauty standards, often driven by algorithms and influencer culture (Ley & Rambukkana, 2021). Platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube significantly shape what is seen as “normal” or desirable, and young people are highly sensitive to how they are perceived—yet often unaware of the technical systems shaping these images.
Interviews with youth workers echo existing studies, calling for more nuanced perspectives on gender, diversity, and female representation in digital media. While some online content breaks stereotypes, platform logic often reinforces dominant beauty ideals. Education must address the question: Who sets the norms of beauty and body image? And how can we ensure more inclusive representations? (Antezana et al., 2022)
Body Shinning
is a transnational youth initiative addressing the growing phenomenon of body shaming and promoting a more inclusive and authentic understanding of body positivity. Rooted in a needs analysis conducted across five partner countries (Bulgaria, France, Greece, Italy), the project responds to the alarming rate of young people—up to 75%—reporting experiences of mockery or discrimination based on physical appearance. Despite increased public attention on body image and self-acceptance, safe spaces for young people to explore self-awareness and body confidence remain limited. The project identifies how social pressure, low self-esteem, and online exposure reinforce negative perceptions of one’s body, leading to anxiety, shame, and exclusion—especially among disadvantaged youth. Body Shinning challenges narrow ideals and stereotypes by redefining body positivity as the acceptance and celebration of all forms of diversity—body shape, colour, gender identity, and ability. Through non-formal education, artistic expression, and participatory workshops, the project empowers young people to:
- Recognize and respond to acts of body-shaming and cyberbullying.
- Build emotional resilience, relational skills, and self-confidence.
- Co-create artistic campaigns and public actions that raise awareness about diversity, respect, and inclusion.
Ultimately, the project supports the development of a positive body culture that values authenticity and empathy over conformity, helping youth to transform self-consciousness into self-expression and solidarity.
References
Antezana G, Venning A, Smith D, Bidargaddi N. (2022) Understanding what we know so far about young people’s engagement with wellbeing apps. A scoping review and narrative synthesis. DIGITAL HEALTH. 2022;8. https://doi.org/10.1177/20552076221144104
Chun, W. H. K. (2016). Updating to remain the same: Habitual new media. MIT Press.
Ley, M., & Rambukkana, N. (2021). Touching at a distance: Digital intimacies, haptic platforms, and the ethics of consent. Science and Engineering Ethics, 27(5), Article 63. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11948-021-00338-1
Elisa Rapetti
Researcher and learning facilitator with a PhD in Social Research Methodology. She works in research, training, and project design, focusing on youth participation, Global Citizenship Education, and digital transformation at Democracy and Human Right Education in Europe (DARE).
Email: elisa.rapetti.at.dare-network.eu
Handbook: More than Go with the Flow
- A handbook on Digital Citizenship Education, created in the frame of the project DIYW-ROAD/Competendo. Digital Youth Work - rights-sensitive, open, accessible, democratic.
- Unless otherwise stated, authors and editors of the methods published in the project are Elisa Rapetti, Markus José Plasencia Kanzler, and Nils-Eyk Zimmermann
