Teens who blog may relate better to their friends and improve self esteem, research published by the American Psychological Association shows.
According to a study covered in this article from Medical News Today, a group of 161 high school students in Israel – 124 girls and 37 boys, with an average age of 15 – were selected for their level of social anxiety and difficulty relating to friends. During a 10-week span, four groups were assigned to blog and two control groups were assigned to write a private diary or do nothing. During this time, self-esteem, social anxiety, emotional distress and the number of positive behaviors improved significantly for bloggers when compared to teens that did nothing and those who wrote private diaries.
According to study’s lead author, Meyran Boniel-Nissim, PhD, of the University of Haifa, Israel, “Blogging enables free expression and easy communication with others.”
During the study, many students opened their blogs up to comments from the online community. Students sharing their difficulties with the public improved their self-esteem, anxiety, emotional distress, and positive social behaviors the most.
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