Opportunities and Benefits of Interactive Communication

When it comes to analysing the role of ICT and interactive communication in adolescents’ lives, it is important not to focus only on the risks. Online opportunities matter too (Livingstone, Mascheroni, & Staksrud, 2017). It is obvious that digital safety is important, but we must find an adequate balance between protection and adolescents’ rights and opportunities (Livingstone, Lemish, et al., 2017; Livingstone &

Haddon, 2012). Nevertheless, this is not an easy task, since some strategies to reduce online risks may have the unintended consequence of limiting online opportunities and benefits (Garmendia, Garitaonandia, & Casado, 2012; Livingstone & Haddon, 2012). Consequently, digital technology use involves continuous debate around risks and opportunities (Pruulmann-Vengerfeldt & Runnel, 2012).

It is important to point out that the main difference between online risks and online opportunities is that online opportunities generally afford positive benefits for children and adolescents, whereas online risks are associated with a certain likelihood of harm (Livingstone, 2013). In any case, as with online risks, which do not always imply harm, online opportunities do not always imply benefit. That is, they just comprise the possibility that benefits or harm might occur.

Digital technologies offer a broad range of opportunities for entertainment, communication, information and education that adolescents can take advantage of (Chisholm, 2006; Ktoridou et al., 2012; Livingstone & Helsper, 2010; Vandoninck et al., 2010). Thus, in this environment young people can learn about the world, express themselves, and experiment with their identities (Chisholm, 2006; Kupiainen et al., 2012).

Furthermore, online opportunities are usually related to adolescents’ motives for using digital technology. Accordingly, one of the first studies on uses and gratifications with children and the Internet showed that children’s motives for using the Internet were affinity with computers, seeking information, entertainment, boredom avoidance, online social interaction and offline social interaction. Offline social interaction was the least important motive, a fact which makes sense if we consider that, at the time, only 24% of families had home access to the Internet (Valkenburg & Soeters, 2001). Subsequent studies have shown that audio-visual entertainment, searching for information, personal relationships, economic orientation, leisure, communication and learning are motives for using the Internet among teenagers (García Jiménez, López de Ayala López, & Gaona Pisonero, 2012).

Similarly, it was found that young people use social media sites, such as Facebook, due to six motives: entertainment, virtual community, maintenance of relationships, coolness, companionship and self-expression (Igartua & Rodríguez-de-Dios, 2016).

Likewise, another study found five types of motivations for using social media:

searching for friends, social support, information, entertainment and convenience (Y.

Kim, Sohn, & Choi, 2011). Accordingly, interactive communication and maintenance of social relations, the search for entertainment and learning are some of the reasons why adolescents make use of digital technology and social media.

Consequently, one of the opportunities that digital technology offers is communication. This communication-based opportunity refers to the use of instant messaging, of social media sites, of webcams and of chatrooms, among others (Pruulmann-Vengerfeldt & Runnel, 2012). Therefore, digital technology provides young people with the possibility to interactively communicate on social media sites and instant messaging applications. As we have seen previously, adolescents engage in this type of communication daily and it has become a focal point in their social lives (Valkenburg & Peter, 2011).

This communication offers a lot of possibilities and benefits for its users. For example, it keeps individuals connected in society (Lin, 2009). Thus, people who are thousands of miles away can stay in touch and interact instantaneously, something that would otherwise be unthinkable. Accordingly, it has been found that users resort to social networks because they are an efficient way to stay in touch with friends, to communicate, to express themselves and to make new friends (Colás, González, & de Pablos, 2013). With the use of social media young people can enhance social relationships as they can share their thoughts, feelings and content there (Kupiainen et al., 2012). This brings benefits since online communication can enhance online self- disclosure; that is, online communication about personal topics that are typically not easily disclosed, such as one’s feelings, worries, and vulnerabilities, which in turn can promote adolescents’ well-being (Valkenburg & Peter, 2009) and social relationships (Koutamanis et al., 2013; Trepte et al., 2017). Likewise, research has shown that social media use can be beneficial for the development of empathic skills in adolescents (Vossen & Valkenburg, 2016).

Secondly, adolescents can also take-up of entertainment opportunities in the digital environment. For example, they can play games online or download games and other sorts of mobile applications. In this sense, research has shown that there is a link between playing video games or computer games and having higher self-reported problem solving skills (Adachi & Willoughby, 2013), having better spatial skills (Murias, Kwok, Castillejo, Liu, & Iaria, 2016) and cognitive skills (Mackey, Hill, Stone,

& Bunge, 2011), and an increasing speed and attention in mathematical calculations (Mahmoudi, Koushafar, Saribagloo, & Pashavi, 2015). Moreover, playing online video games has been found to bolster adolescents’ perceived life satisfaction (Kowert, Vogelgesang, Festl, & Quandt, 2015). Finally, Jackson et al. (2006) concluded that low- income children who used the Internet more had greater reading achievement.

The third type of opportunity is related to multimedia. It includes activities such as watching video clips online, downloading music and films, listening to music and using photo or video editing software. Therefore, digital technologies, such as smartphones, tablets or computers, allow adolescents to produce their own multimedia pieces and to watch videos, TV series or films online.

Finally, digital technology can also be used for learning outcomes. Thus, adolescents can take advantage of the Internet, the computer, the smartphone or interactive communication for learning purposes, such as searching for information, using word processor software or doing homework. In this sense, it is important to note that research has shown that use of digital technology for learning brings great benefits for adolescents. As we will discuss the outcomes of mobile learning on this population in chapter 5, at this point we will only briefly review the educational benefits that technology offers. Accordingly, previous research has shown that the use of digital technology in learning increases students’ motivation, achievement and performance (Chauhan, 2017; C. M. Chen, Tan, & Lo, 2016; Hwang, Chen, Shadiev, Huang, & Chen, 2014; Kebritchi, Hirumi, & Bai, 2010; Sharifi, Rostami AbuSaeedi, Jafarigohar, & Zandi, 2017; Taylor, Casto, & Walls, 2007; Zakaria & Khalid, 2016).

Specifically, research has demonstrated that this use facilitates reading fluency (C. M.

Chen et al., 2016), writing skills (Hwang et al., 2014) and problem-solving skills (K. E.

Chang, Sung, & Lin, 2006), among others.

In conclusion, digital technology offers a broad range of opportunities for entertainment, communication and education that can afford positive benefits for adolescents. In consequence, and as we have argued above, online opportunities are as important as online risks, and they should not be forgotten when dealing with the risks. In view of the facts, it is essential to study how online opportunities can be promoted among adolescents. Finally, considering the promising role of digital skills for facing online risks, it is crucial to analyse the impact of these skills on online