Digital Native or Lost in the Digital World? The Internet Activity of Polish Teenagers in the Context of Search Methods and the Assessment of Information Reliability

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to present the patterns of Internet use by teenagers and adolescents, with a particular focus on the ways of searching and verifying information on the web. The work is based on the interpretation of data concerning the time spent on the Internet and the goals and methods of its use. In the first part of the article, I mention the concept of digital nativism, which has been criticized in academic debate. Then I analyze the scope, time, and goals of Internet use. Among the activities undertaken by teenagers, entertainment-oriented activities dominate, which, although they play an important role in the developmental process, can lead to erroneous beliefs related to the practices and goals of using the Internet. The next part of the article is dedicated to the methods of searching and verifying information. Although traditional search methods are still popular among teenagers, young people use internal search engines on social media because they try to limit the number of sources when finding the necessary information and are most familiar with social media platforms. Awareness of the need to verify information in this group is growing, but it still does not reach a high level. Furthermore, teenagers tend to use superficial methods of verifying online knowledge, which can expose them to information bubbles, disinformation, and phishing, among other things. From this perspective, it is particularly important to focus on how we can prepare young people to be conscious users of the network and how adults can support beneficial habits related to Internet activity. We also need data that tells us more about the actual—and not just declared—behavior of teenagers in the network.