Effects of the social media interference factor on memory consolidation in adolescents

Abstract

The relevance of this study is due to the need to answer the question of how the factors of digital medium affect the development of mental functions in the younder generation. The study was aimed to assess the effects of the social media interference factor on memory (auditory-speech and visual-figurative) consolidation in adolescents. The sample was 130 adolescents aged 11–17. The groups were formed based on the age stages (11–12, 13–14, 15–17 years). The study involved the use of the method for the diagnosis of the short-term auditory-speech and visual-figurative memory span. Viewing video content and reading the fragment of the fiction book were used as interference. A significant decrease in the short-term auditory-speech and visual-figurative memory span was observed in adolescents. The short-term memory span is reduced in the context of social media interference (prolonged continuous viewing the heterogenous visual-acoustic and visual-speech content). The high risk of the long-term memory loss due to the impact of the social media interference factor on memory consolidation in adolescents is empirically proven. The more the duration of the maximum continuous video stream and the total time the adolescents spend on Internet (including social media), the larger is the loss of information.