Internet effects

Adolescents’ extensive use of Internet communication and the uncertainty about its consequences call for an integrative perspective that helps to understand both the appeal of Internet communication and its risks and opportunities. The aim of this essay is to theorize, and if possible, substantiate by evidence that both the appeal of Internet communication and its psychosocial implications can be attributed to enhanced controllability of online self-presentation and self-disclosure. Self-presentation and self-disclosure are vital for at least two important components of psychosocial development: identity and intimacy. This essay will review the research on the effects of online self-presentation and self-disclosure on adolescents’ identity and intimacy development. Finally, it discusses some shortcomings of existing research as well as possibilities for future research.