Young People in Digital Environments Agency, Opportunities and Risks

This pioneering book examines how young people's agency in differing digital landscapes intersects with areas such as communication, economy, work and leisure. Terhi-Anna Wilska and Jussi Nyrhinen analyse the underlying factors upholding these dynamics and provide recommendations to enhance young people's influence and competence in digital environments.The contributing authors explore how the role of social media affects the ways in which young people perceive information and news and communicate with family and peers. They investigate risks related to privacy, online gambling and gaming, virtual surveillance, algorithmic advertising and AI-based evaluations. The book uses a variety of research methods within multidisciplinary theoretical frameworks to present a cross-cultural approach focused on global issues including the COVID-19 pandemic and the rise of everyday Artificial Intelligence. It also illustrates how social media can empower young people by enabling active agency, increasing their financial wellbeing, improving their digital skills and extending their social networks. Young People in Digital Environments is a vital resource for students and scholars in digital and cultural sociology, science and technology and the sociology of youth and childhood. Timely and engaging, it is also beneficial to policymakers and practitioners in schools, NGOs and to leaders in digital businesses.