title: “Are algorithms hurting your teen? The shocking truth about algorithmic bias and its harmful effects” date: 2021-05-21T10:34:30+05:30 description: “Discover the harmful effects of algorithmic bias on your teen and what you can do about it.”
Introduction
Today, the world is run by algorithms. From search engines to social media and even college admissions, algorithms determine most of our major decisions. While it is true that technology has made our lives easier, it is also important to understand that algorithms can be biased, and they can negatively impact the lives of our teens.
What is algorithmic bias?
Algorithmic bias refers to the unfair and harmful outcomes resulting from the use of algorithms. These algorithms rely on data to make decisions, and if the data is biased, the decisions made by these algorithms can also be biased. This can lead to adverse effects on certain groups of people, especially those already marginalized in society.
The harmful effects of algorithmic bias on your teen
Mental health: Social media algorithms are designed to keep users engaged by showing them more of what they like, leading to an echo chamber effect. This can be particularly harmful to teens who are still trying to find their identity and may be prone to comparing their lives to the fake perfection depicted on social media.
Education: Algorithms are used in college admissions and can unintentionally discriminate against certain groups of students. For example, an algorithm may consider an applicant’s high school’s average SAT score, but not take into account that minority or low-income students may not have access to the same resources as their wealthier and privileged counterparts.
Job opportunities: Algorithms can be used to screen job applications and resumes. However, if the algorithm is biased, it may unfairly reject certain candidates, perpetuating discrimination in the workplace.
Criminal justice system: Algorithms are used to predict criminal behavior and assess the risk of recidivism in convicted criminals. However, if the data used to train these algorithms is biased, it can lead to wrongful convictions and perpetuate systemic racism in the criminal justice system.
What you can do about it
Educate yourself: Learn more about algorithms and their potential for bias. Try to understand the limitations of the algorithms and how they operate.
Encourage transparency: Demand more transparency from companies and organizations that use algorithms. They should provide explanations of how their algorithms work, how data is collected and used, and how transparency supports fairness.
Advocate for fair algorithms: Speak out against unfair and biased algorithms. Encourage your friends, family members, and relevant stakeholders to support the creation and use of fair algorithms.
Conclusion
Algorithms are an essential part of our daily lives, particularly for the younger generation. However, it is vital to be aware of the potential for bias, particularly when it comes to the lives of our teens. By educating ourselves and advocating for fair algorithms, we can help ensure that our teens aren’t negatively impacted by algorithmic bias.
The prejudice baked into some technology, known as algorithmic bias, can be harmful to many groups, but experts say it’s particularly damaging to teens.
Key Takeaways
- Algorithmic bias is harmful to teenagers who spend a lot of time on the internet, experts say.Twitter users recently encountered a problem in which Black faces were culled in favor of white ones.Teenagers’ developing brains may be particularly susceptible to the damaging effects of algorithmic bias, researchers say.
Algorithmic bias, when computer systems show prejudiced results, is a growing problem. Twitter users recently found an example of bias on the platform when an image-detection algorithm that crops photos was cutting out Black faces in favor of white ones. The company apologized for the issue, but has not yet released a fix. It’s an example of the bias that teenagers face when they go online, which they do more than any other age group, experts say.
“Most teens are unaware that social media companies have them in place to promote specific content that they think users will like [in order] to get them to stay as long as possible on the platform,” Dr. Mai-Ly Nguyen Steers, assistant professor in the School of Nursing at Duquesne University who studies social media usage among adolescents/college students, said in an email interview.
“Even if there is some level of consciousness about the algorithm, the effect of not getting enough likes and comments is still powerful and can affect teens’ self-esteem,” added Steers.
Developing Brains
Algorithmic bias may affect teens in unforeseen ways since their prefrontal cortex is still developing, Mikaela Pisani, Chief Data Scientist at Rootstrap, explained in an email interview.
“Teens are especially vulnerable to the phenomenon of the ‘Social Factory’, where algorithms create societal clusters on online platforms, leading to anxiety and depression if the teen’s needs of social approval are not met,” said Pisani. “Algorithms simplify based on previous imperfect data—leading to an overrepresentation of stereotypes at the expense of more nuanced approaches to identity formation.
The effect of not getting enough likes and comments is still powerful and can affect teens’ self-esteem.
“Taking the broader viewpoint, we are also left to question, as a society, if we want algorithms shaping our teens’ journeys into adulthood, and does this system even support rather than stifle individual personal growth?”
Because of these problems, there’s a growing need to keep teenagers in mind when designing algorithms, experts say.
“Based on input from developmental specialists, data scientists, and youth advocates, 21st-century policies around data privacy and algorithmic design could also be constructed with adolescents’ particular needs in mind,” Avriel Epps-Darling, a doctoral student at Harvard, wrote recently. “If we instead continue to downplay or ignore the ways that teens are vulnerable to algorithmic racism, the harms are likely to reverberate through generations to come.”
Combating Bias
Until there is a solution, some researchers are trying to find ways to lessen the damage done to young people by biased algorithms.
“Interventions have been focused on making teens recognize their social media patterns are negatively impacting their mental health and trying to come up with strategies to mitigate that (e.g., reduced social media use),” Steers said.
“Some of the college students we have interviewed have indicated they feel compelled to generate content to remain “relevant,” even if they do not want to go out or post,” she continued. “However, they feel they need to generate content to maintain their connections with their followers or friends.”
The ultimate answer could be removing human bias from computers. But since programmers are only human, that’s a tough challenge, experts say.
One possible solution is to develop computers that are decentralized and programmed to forget things that they have learned, says John Suit, Chief Technology Officer at robotics firm KODA.
“Through a decentralized network, data, and the analytics of that data, are being compiled and analyzed from multiple points,” Suit said in an email interview. “Data is being collected and processed not from a single AI mind processing within the limits of its algorithm, but hundreds or even thousands.
“As that data is collected and analyzed, old “conclusions” or superfluous data is forgotten. Through this system, an algorithm that may have started with bias will eventually correct and replace that bias if it proves to be wrong.”
While bias may be an age-old problem, there may be ways to combat it, at least online. Designing computers that shed our prejudices is the first step.
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