People use digital media and the Internet daily. The time that young people spend connected to digital devices will increase as technology advances, which could have severe health risks and behavioral dependence implications. In the context of the current pandemic, in which socializing, studying, and working is changing, this question has become particularly relevant. Therefore, we propose to investigate the perceptions of young university adults—understood as generation Z—regarding their digital media practices, particularly during the pandemic, and to study the consequences of a permanent connection to these formats on the development of an addiction to the Internet. Our quantitative method approach applied questionnaires to a sample of 407 young university adults studying in Portugal. Through this survey, we could target a specific user group, quantify their consumption, and measure their online experiences. The results point to an increase in dependence on the Internet during confinement. While it is true that carrying out academic work is one of the reasons for this growth, it is noteworthy that the respondents sought the online world in a significan way to pass the time and escape their routine. In addition, they confess to experiencing some consequences of excessive use, such as sleep disturbances and adverse emotional reactions—such as instabilities, depression, and nervousness—when not online. We conclude that the pandemic has intensified online dependence. However, above all that, it is necessary to look at the mental and general health consequences that this excessive use has brought, which may not be visible or manifested by the youth in the short term, and may come to have consequences in the long term.

Jovens e práticas de acesso e de consumo de notícias nos media sociais

The development of technological and communication platforms generates academic, political and social debates. In the field of Media Studies, there is a special concern with the younger generations, as studies document that they express particular behaviors due to the increased diffusion of digital consumption in their lives (Silveira & Amaral, 2018). In the field of media literacy, news literacy becomes even more relevant today due to the rise of fake news, which is one of the biggest challenges for digital journalism today, because it endangers the truth and instigates misinformation, which could have serious repercussions for society in general and for the youngest more susceptible generations, in particular. Based on these assumptions, this article comprehends and analyses the dynamics of reception of news and social media by university students studying in Portugal, specifically in the Faculty of Design, Technology and Communication – European Unievrsity of Lisbon (in the academic year 2018/2019), located in Lisbon. Through the development of a qualitative methodology, we set to find the participants particular uses of social media for news access and consumption. We intend to define these audiences preference profiles, identify practices, analyse their relationship with the media and find patterns in their use of technology to access information and fake news. The results allow us to conclude that these audiences get their news almost exclusively through online platforms. Some of them distinguish fake news due to format and content, while others share them unknowingly. They seem to rely more on newspaper and TV for reliable sources of information and think that most of fake news are found online. All seem to think that the proliferation of fake news is discrediting journalism and the media in general and both media and citizens should strive to make news literacy a reality for all.

The aim of this research is to understand children`s involvement with the news, and the impact of general issues on these audiences. In 2014, with the participation of 42 Portuguese children in six focus groups, the research concluded that the nature of children’s involvement with the news is contextualised within the following variables: gender; preferences; life experiences; skills to process issues; forms of exposure and media coverage of events; and family mediation. The data reveal that children frequently watch the news and get involved and excited about these topics. But, the results also reveal that children may feel disturbed when viewing certain problematic events to which they direct their attention mainly as a result of permanent media coverage of such events via shocking images. The latter phenomenon arises even more frequently during moments of crisis and terrorism, imposing the need to focus on media literacy.

Information about the paper titled "YOUNG PEOPLE AND THEIR PRACTICES OF ACCESS AND CONSUMPTION OF NEWS IN SOCIAL MEDIA" at IATED Digital Library

Sta investigação, de natureza exploratória, tem como objeto de estudo as perceções de jovens adultos a frequentar o Ensino Universitário em Portugal, sobre as suas práticas de acesso e de consumo da Internet e dos media sociais, em especial durante a pandemia da COVID-19, e as consequências da conexão permanente a estes formatos para o desenvolvimento do risco de dependência comportamental. De ponto de vista metodológico, foram aplicados inquéritos por questionário a uma amostra de 407 jovens adultos universitários, com uma média de idade de 19,6 anos, a frequentar o ensino público e o privado. Os resultados apontam para um aumento da dependência em relação à Internet durante o confinamento. Mais de metade dos inquiridos considera que a Internet é indispensável em algumas ocasiões da sua vida, da mesma forma que confessa que sente algumas das consequências do uso excessivo, como sejam a adição aos sites de redes sociais ou as perturbações de sono.