Written by: Isabel Garlough-Shah
Social media is an ever-changing, fast-paced world where genres of content rise and fall constantly. To stay up to date, we need a network of people that inform on every possible corner of social media. The SMAHRT Youth Advisory Board (YAB) aids in our efforts to research social media and how it relates to adolescent health.
YAB members have assisted the SMAHRTeam immensely by suggesting platform changes and contributing additional aspects of social media to examine. Throughout their time in the YAB, members have gained important life and professional skills. They build off what they’ve learned from Summer Research Scholars (SRS): an 8-week program that gives high school students the opportunity to do an independent, in-depth research project.
Ethan and Janice are both first year members of the SMAHRT YAB and completed one SRS project. Each describe how their SRS projects stemmed from personal experiences in the pandemic and social media.
Ethan’s project was about loneliness and social media. He was interested in this subject because during the pandemic he notice how frequently he was on his phone. In addition to this, he knew how lonely adolescents felt during this time.
“Loneliness is one of the most prevalent emotions experienced in adolescence right now. And during the pandemic, social media really took a rise. So, I thought it would be a good idea to look at that.” – Ethan
Janice’s project explored the frequency and variability of LGBTQ+ content on Tik-Tok. While using this platform, they noticed the vast amount of LGBTQ+ content on their “For You” page. However, when they logged into a separate account it was a different story.
“My project was about LGBTQ+ content on Tik-Tok. Because I was spending a lot of time on Tik-Tok I was seeing a lot of LGBTQ+ content. But when I was logged out, I noticed that there wasn’t a lot of LGBTQ+ content. So, I wanted to know more about how many people were being shown LGBTQ+ content, what kind of content there was, and the different messages that were being shown.” – Janice
Both scholars spoke on how SRS gave them the basic skills necessary to conduct their own research. However, it also taught them important life skills like organization and accountability.
“The program helped me be more responsible. I really got into using Google calendar because of Summer Research Scholars. Previously, I just hoped I would remember everything I had to do.” -Janice
This experience was just the beginning of Ethan and Janice’s research journey. Both scholars decided to join the YAB after SRS, but for different reasons. Janice described how their interest in real-world research made them apply to the program.
“I was really interested in research, and specifically, adolescent mental health related research after Summer Research Scholars, because I’d gotten a glimpse into the process… I was really interested in seeing how it was in the real world…It’s been cool to see the different research projects that get brought for us to look at under the Youth Advisory Board.” – Janice
Ethan transitioned to YAB after SRS because of his passion for research and want for a more in-depth experience. Ethan expressed that what truly excites him about research is the potential to produce knowledge and advance humanity.
“The reason I want to do research is because I figured that if I’m gonna be doing a job, I should definitely choose something that progresses humanity. You could just be a super-rich businessman and make a ton of money or you could be a researcher. At least you know that your work progresses human knowledge.” – Ethan
To get students to the point where they can change the world, they need academic and professional skills to build on. Ethan spoke about how the YAB helped him become a faster reader and critical thinker.
“[YAB] rehearsed my skills with research papers. Now in school, whenever I have to write a research paper and go on Google Scholar and do literature reviews I can just skim through and understand them.”- Ethan
Janice recounted similar progress in reading and critical thinking. Moreover, they expressed that their professional growth stemmed from YAB mentors and their own experiences.
“I think [YAB] helped me become a better thinker and reader. In addition, the professional development sessions in each meeting, where we go over specific skills, those were helpful as well! Especially since, the college students or adults are giving their advice that they’ve gone through with life experience.”- Janice
This growth came from an environment that was informal and flexible. Members were able to give fundamental feedback to the SMAHRTeam in YAB meetings due to the freedom they had. Many would expect rigidness from an “Advisory Board”; however, Janice described the YAB as the exact opposite.
“I would say, it’s pretty relaxed. When you hear ‘advisory board’, someone might picture people in suits sitting around a table, discussing stocks. But we don’t, we don’t really put on pretenses. I suppose we’re all there to discuss whatever we want to discuss.” – Janice
Because of this autonomy, discussions have had unpredictable, but memorable moments. In recent meetings, Janice illustrated how some necessary input led to some unexpected hilarity.
“Last meeting when we’re talking about the different Tik-Tok categories, we came up with a category that was ‘thirst traps.’ And we tried for so long. It was so hard to find a name better than thirst traps, we just couldn’t. So, we ended up making our group members say, ‘thirst traps’ to the whole group.”
Amid this fun, both YAB members expressed how being a part of this program has taught them a tremendous amount. Students coming out of SRS and the YAB have gained skills in research, time management, organization, resume building, interviewing, and more.
Janice will be taking these skills with them into their freshman year of college this Fall. They’re excited to take everything they’ve learned from their year with SMAHRT and apply it to their academic career.
Ethan is currently on his second SRS project. In this project he’s building off his previous research and taking a thorough look at loneliness and social media. He plans to reapply for the SMAHRT YAB this upcoming year so he can continue to be involved and learn about research.