Latent and Internet-Mediated Forms of Deviant Youth Behavior / Латентные и интернет-опосредованные формы отклоняющегося поведения молодежи

Гурьянчик Виталий Николаевич ORCID: 0000-0001-9963-4510 кандидат исторических наук доцент, кафедра социальной педагогики и организации работы с молодежью, Ярославский государственный педагогический университет им. К.Д. Ушинского 150000, Россия, Ярославская область, г. Ярославль, наб. Которосльная, 44 Gur'yanchik Vitalii Nikolaevich PhD in History Associate Professor, Department of Social Pedagogy and Organization of Work with Youth, Yaroslavl State Pedagogical University named after K.D. Ushinsky 150000, Russia, Yaroslavl region, Yaroslavl, nab. Kotoroslnaya, 44 vit-gurjanchik@yandex.ru Другие публикации этого автора

Исследование проведено в рамках выполнения государственного задания № 073-00036-24-08 на научно-исследовательскую работу по теме «Теоретико-методологическое обоснование и разработка вариативной модели профилактики отклоняющегося поведения студенческой молодежи «цифрового» поколения»

This article was previously published in Russian in the journal Pedagogy and Education, available at this link: https://nbpublish.com/ppmag/contents_2024.html.

Introduction

The spread of digital technologies in the world today is considered an irreversible process, associated not only with changes in the technical, technological, financial, economic, transport, and household spheres of society but also with a change in people's consciousness and, consequently, their behavior. As a socio-demographic group, youth have the greatest potential for perceiving and accepting digital reality as an integral condition for designing their future. Today's socialization of the younger generation is inextricably linked to the digital environment in which they are involved through online communities and social networks. G. U. Soldatova considers digital socialization "as a process mediated by info-communication technologies of mastering and appropriation by an individual of social experience and social connections that he acquires in online contexts, the reproduction of this experience and social relations in multiple the reality of the surrounding world" ^{[1, p. 432]}.

However, along with the positive aspects of digitalization (accessibility of information, the ability to communicate, the ability to create in a digital environment, etc.), virtualization of life is fraught with several negative aspects, among which digital deviation stands out. The emergence of the concept of "digital deviation" in deviantology is associated with the spread of digital technologies at the level of everyday life. Considering digital deviation as a special type of deviant behavior, it should be emphasized that this type of deviant behavior manifests itself not only in the digital environment in the form of violations of certain norms and rules of digital communication but also manifests itself in the form of the transfer of destructions from virtual space to the material world. M. V. Kostolomova gives the following definition of digital deviation: "Digital deviation or digital deviant behavior is a set of atypical, deviating from social norms, emotional, physical, social, intellectual and ideological reactions of a person to drastic changes in social reality caused by the influence of digitalization on all levels of human existence" ^{[2, p. 48]}. Considering the reasons for the deviant behavior of the younger generation in the digital environment, D. G. Shkaev notes: "However, the true reason for the deviant behavior of young people does not lie in the array of meme viruses that are illegally or semi-legally distributed on the Internet, although, of course, such information serves as a catalyst. At the stage of socialization, the global network allows adolescents to construct a digital alter ego as a kind of 'digital personality image,' including any desired features and characteristics in such a construct" ^{[3, p. 53]}.

Modern researchers identify many types of digital deviation. For example, A. A. Volchenkova and A. M. Zagumennaya consider such types of digital deviations as cyberaddiction, cyberdelict, and cyber aggression in various forms of their manifestation ^{[4, pp. 47–48]}. In this case, we are talking about Internet-mediated forms of digital deviation, by which we mean specific manifestations of deviant behavior that arise from individuals' interaction with digital technologies and the online space. These forms of deviation are characterized by using online platforms to implement actions that violate social norms and rules. Internet-mediated forms of deviation differ from traditional forms in that they often manifest themselves anonymously and without direct physical contact, which reduces the level of individual responsibility for their actions. The virtual environment creates conditions for the latent nature of such manifestations, allowing users to act without fear of being exposed. Internet-mediated forms of digital deviation can also include emotional and social reactions.

Latent forms of digital deviation can be defined as hidden or implicit manifestations of deviant behavior in the digital environment. These are not always obvious and may not provoke an immediate reaction from society or the control system. The absence of explicit sanctions characterizes these forms of deviation. It can manifest in emotional, social, or intellectual reactions from interaction with digital technologies and cyberspace. These manifestations may include behaviors such as trolling, phishing, or other forms of manipulation and deception that are not always perceived as serious violations of norms. At the same time, the individual may not realize or feel responsible for his actions, increasing the deviation's latent nature.

Researchers of the problem of digital deviation among children and youth identify different levels of its manifestation and influence on personality. So M.V. Kostolomova conditionally identifies six such levels ^{[2, pp. 49–50]}:

1) Emotional level – "alienated in a digital crowd";

2) physical level – "digital dementia";

3) communication level – "digital narcissism";

4) social level – "virtual escapism";

5) intellectual level – "I know everything and nothing";

6) the value and worldview level – "Who am I."

The study of the problem of deviant behavior in the digital environment based on a socio-cultural approach reflects the "digital culture syndrome," which focuses on phenomena limited by digital socialization and generated by the widespread use of digital technologies. In this regard, C. I. Pelea notes: "The global situation of increased social and emotional vulnerability has led to increased and accelerated digital transformation and the strengthening of digital culture in everyday life. In this light, the widespread impact of the close relationship between humans and technology has led to public awareness of potential mental health problems associated with prolonged contact with the digital environment and culture" ^{[5, p. 243]}. It is no coincidence that researchers in recent years have used the concept of "global child" in the context of the typology of modal personality: "digital person," "consuming person" and "mobile person" ^{[6, p. 104]}.

The main part

The development of modern youth, according to G.U. Soldatova, "can be considered as the formation of a hyper-connected, technologically completed digital personality as part of a real personality operating in mixed reality, when the online world is included in offline activities and 'intertwined' with it, and conditions of digital sociality" ^{[7, p. 13]}. Indeed, global statistics show that all over the world, young people in the age range of 20–25, especially young people in education, use social networks most actively ^[8]. In our survey, 349 respondents stated that they are registered on various social networks and have online accounts. Most respondents (62%) spend 2 to 5 hours a day on social media, 35.4% use social media for more than 5 hours a day, and only 2.6% of young people said that social media takes less than 1 hour.

Answering the question, "Have you encountered deviant behavior from other users on social media?" 87.2% of students noted that they had experienced some degree of deviation, and one in seven respondents (14.6%) openly admitted that they themselves exhibit deviations in the digital environment. In comparison, 76% believe deviant behavior in the digital space is unacceptable.

A correlation analysis using the r-Spearman criterion showed that the more time students spend on social media, the more likely they are to encounter deviant behavior from other users (r = 0.153, with p < 0,004). There is also a correlation between the questions "Do you allow yourself to exhibit deviant behavior in a digital environment?" and "Have you encountered deviant behavior from other users on social media?" which is 0.241 (p<0,000). This shows that students who exhibit deviant behavior are more likely to encounter such behavior from others.

Among the most typical forms of digital deviation, students identified the following: humiliation and harassment of other users, 16.4%; fraud and theft of personal data, 16.1%; insulting another user in public, 15.1%; creation and dissemination of extremist content, 14.4%; dissemination of false information, 11.9%; insults in private conversation, 8.5%; posting photos of other users on social networks, 5.9% and so on. Based on the results of a study of the manifestations of youth deviations in the digital space of a megalopolis, I.V. Vorobyova concluded that "the most common digital deviation of youth in a virtual urban environment is aggression in its most diverse manifestations—from irony and sarcasm to insults and humiliation of the interlocutor. It was found that the most typical use for users is direct verbal aggression, for which profanity and abuse are often used to maximize pressure on the opponent" ^{[9, p. 748]}.

The respondents' answers indicate that students are not only aware of latent and Internet-mediated forms of digital deviation but are themselves translators of such forms of deviation. In this context, it should be noted that 54.9% of students perceive the possibility of serious consequences only in some special cases, i.e., not always, and 11.7% believe the impossibility of serious consequences from destructive behavior in the digital environment. Only one in three respondents indicated the inevitability of possible outcomes. In other words, students, to some extent, treat the manifestation of digital deviations as something ordinary, "normal," and "natural" in cyberspace. In the minds of young people, there is a reassessment of existing norms and rules of behavior regarding the digital space. In this regard, G. U. Soldatova and co-authors state: "Digital transformations and the modern lifestyle they define pose new challenges for families and schools, shift the boundaries of norm and pathology in assessing the development of children and adolescents, setting new areas of uncertainty, opportunities and risks" ^{[10, p. 5]}.

Among the possible reasons for digital deviation, students mainly identified personal reasons: the desire to attract attention, 26.7%; poor upbringing, 25.2%; low level of education, 17.8%. At the same time, every fifth respondent (21%) chose the anonymity of the virtual space as the main reason, i.e., situational. Among the main measures to reduce digital destruction, most young students chose administrative measures: strengthening content control, 23.5%; increasing fines for violations, 22%; and introducing technologies to identify anonymous users, 16.7%. However, educational and educational measures (information campaigns and the introduction of academic programs) were chosen by 34.8% of respondents. Moreover, 70.9% of young people, to one degree or another, spoke in favor of the need to include courses on preventing deviant behavior in the digital environment in universities' educational programs. The rest of the respondents either opposed such an initiative (17.7%) or believed it should depend on the direction of training (11.4%).

Correlation analysis revealed the presence of statistically significant links between the questions "Do you think it is necessary for the state to exercise some control over the digital space?" and "Do you think that deviant behavior in the digital environment can lead to serious consequences?" r = 0.396 (p<0,000). This shows that those who consider government control necessary are also inclined to believe that deviant behavior in the digital environment can have serious consequences. A similar correlation is observed between the questions "Do you think the state should exercise some control over the digital space?" and "Do you think it is necessary to include education on the prevention of deviant behavior in university curriculum?" (r=0.406, with p<0.001).

From the point of view of students, the most significant changes that occur with a personality under the influence of digitalization are:

1) "digital extensions" – 13%;

2) emotional attachment to the Internet in general – 13%;

3) inseparability from gadgets (hyper-connectivity) – 11.7%;

4) significant expansion of the network of social contacts due to virtual dating – 9.9%.

However, the factors of the negative impact of digitalization on personality are less popular among the students' responses. 9.4% of young people noted the development of nomophobia or fear of being left without access to social networks; 8.7% of respondents chose a decrease in responsibility for their behavior in cyberspace; 7.8% noted the deterioration of interpersonal communication and interaction as a negative trend, and 7.2% of young people believe that the digital space contributes to the decline of human cognitive abilities. At the same time, some respondents (5.8%) noted that they perceive themselves in cyberspace more positively than in real life. In this case, we are talking about creating and replicating a different "I" as a latent form of deviant behavior. The authors of the monograph "Theoretical and Methodological Foundations of Existential Pedagogy" note in this regard: "A person in the conditions of modern realities forms their virtual image, adapting to the expectations of society, or that part of it to which the personal-virtual message is directed. A person gets the opportunity to model themself, reproduce the image that is in demand, endowing them with non-existent characteristics, but allowing them to be in demand and competitive in a virtual environment" ^{[11, p. 234]}.

The reaction of students to destructive content and the manifestation of deviant behavior on the part of other users in the digital environment is also of interest. According to the survey, most students (59.7%) show a passive attitude toward destructive content and prefer inaction as a response. In other words, more than half of respondents choose avoidance as a form of hidden deviation to respond to disruptions in the digital environment. Another 27.7% of young people become distributors of deviant content through reviews and dislikes, and 8.8% do this consciously to share "cool" information with friends. Thus, two-thirds of the surveyed respondents exhibit various forms of latent and Internet-mediated digital deviations as a response strategy to manifestations of deviant behavior by other users. As L. V. Abdalina and K. A. Zykov noted, "There are changes in the personality of the person himself: he becomes 'imprisoned' under the realities of virtual space and the conditions of digitalization. He develops new forms of deviant behavior in the digital environment" ^{[12, p. 89]}.

Modern students are young people between the ages of 17 and 25. The generation born in the early 2000s, the years that are considered the most prosperous, calm, and comfortable in the modern history of Russia, is characterized by apathy, indifference, passivity, and the presence of "adolescent consciousness." Therefore, in the education system, we face the arrival of young people with other behavioral practices and ways of perceiving events, including destructive orientation. As part of preventive work, we often deal with young people in a situation of instability and uncertainty, experiencing emotional fluctuations, which can lead to risky behavior and conflict with others. This requires flexibility in the methods of pedagogical interaction and an individual approach.

Conclusion

Several provisions can be identified based on the consideration of the spread of latent and Internet-mediated forms of deviant behavior among young students in the digital environment. Firstly, digital deviations among users of social networks and the Internet are caused by many personal and situational factors. Such factors include, on the one hand, the desire to attract the audience's attention and the shortcomings of upbringing, and, on the other hand, the anonymity of the virtual space and the inability to fully control the content. As T. Z. Adamyants notes: "As a mirror reflection of the features of the global information environment, among a certain part of the youth, there is a habit of slandering, attracting attention by any means, meaningfully hinting at a negative attitude toward government, public figures, etc. Adaptation, if it occurs, is more likely as selfish self-affirmation and self-love, rather than as a sense of self, a necessary and creative unit of society and the collective" ^{[13, p. 65]}. Cyberspace allows individuals to create different images of their virtual selves using various social networks and fictitious names. There is a kind of replication of the "different self" depending on the requests of subscribers or users, which can be considered as one of the forms of latent digital destruction, a kind of bifurcation of the real and virtual "I."

Secondly, a certain value-semantic digital dissonance is formed when assessing anonymous opportunities and behavior in the digital environment. On the one hand, the virtual space is considered by young people as an info-communication sphere with maximum parameters of secrecy and unrecognizability with all the ensuing possibilities of deviant manifestations. As I. Y. Tarkhanova notes: "Freedom of action and almost limitless opportunities in the virtual space attract young people, drag them into a 'funnel' of events and facts, from which they cannot escape without help, especially for underage users who are not always able to analyze the environment and their behavior to draw the right conclusions and protect themselves." ^{[14, p. 170]}. However, as they come into contact with the manifestations of digital destruction, young people begin to talk about the need to control the digital space and appeal to the state as the central control and administrative entity. In other words, there is no clear image of the info-communication environment's structure in young people's minds, which includes not only the near-term image of the micro level but also the national macro level with the corresponding role of the state.

Thirdly, digital deviations are perceived by young people to a greater extent on a personal level, which is determined by the experience of interacting with destructive content and personal attitude to the manifestations of deviations on the part of other users. This defines the boundaries of what is allowed and not allowed when modeling digital behavior. Blurring the boundaries of communication, in this case, is the main factor in modeling one's digital identity, more precisely, creating and promoting one's digital project of oneself. "Identity formation is considered a project or a series of projects that a person implements, thus promoting a personal brand in various types and forms of activity. In this regard, digital identity has all the key characteristics of a project: purpose, result orientation, the process of achieving it, determining the conditions for implementation, time-based deployment, and relevance to the target audience," note A. M. Kondakov and A. A. Kostyleva ^{[15, p. 209]}.

Fourth, students' responses to the questionnaire demonstrate their reactions to destructive content and deviations in the digital environment. These responses suggest that the primary response strategy is avoidance, i.e., passive responses to destruction are chosen. This reaction is a latent manifestation of conformity, a refusal to resist deviations actively. This behavior is likely based on the inability to effectively assess all the elements of a destructive (conflict) situation and its possible development consequences.

Thus, latent and Internet-mediated forms of digital deviation are complex phenomena that require further study and analysis, including gender-based ones, to understand their impact on the individual and society. In addition, it is necessary to study and summarize the existing experience of socio-psychological and pedagogical practices to prevent digital deviation, including its latent and Internet-mediated forms.