Self-concept, Self-esteem, Gender, Race, and Information Technology Use

This research addressed two fundamental questions regarding self-concept, self-esteem, gender, race, and information technology use. First, is technology use related to dimensions of self-concept and/or to self-esteem? Second, are there gender and/or race differences in self-concept, self-esteem, and technology use? Five hundred youth, average age 12 years old, one third African American and two thirds Caucasian American, completed multidimensional measures of self-concept, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem scale, and measures of frequency of Internet use, Internet use for communication (e-mail and instant messaging), video game playing, and cell phone use. Findings indicated that technology use predicted dimensions of self-concept and self-esteem, with video game playing having a negative influence and Internet use having a positive influence on self-concept dimensions. Gender differences were observed on several self-concept dimensions, but contrary to expectations, girls did not score higher than boys in social self-concept. Only one race difference was observed: African Americans had lower behavioral self-concept than did Caucasian Americans. Implications of the benefits and liabilities of youth's current and projected technology use are discussed.