Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Conversation
The Conversation
Politics
Linda Charmaraman, Director of Youth, Media & Wellbeing Research Lab, Wellesley College

Research on teen social media use has a racial bias – studies of white kids are widely taken to be universal

White teens and teens of color do not have identical online experiences. JGI/Jamie Grill/Tetra images via Getty Images

Most research on teen social media use has been conducted on white teens and college students. As a result, it is unclear to what extent overlooked populations such as racial and ethnic minorities, sexual and gender minorities and other vulnerable adolescent populations may be using social media in different ways.

You may have read about research on teen social media use in newspapers or other media outlets, but you might not be aware of the limitations of that research. Rarely do press reports mention the details of the sample populations studied. Instead, they generalize research that is often based largely on white teens to all youths.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.