Description
Abstract
This article aims to address the issue of jealousy in adolescence as displayed on social networks. This analysis explores the myths of romantic love in teenagers to present a different perspective of gender inequality and violence in society in general, and among youth in particular. The study population consisted of young people aged 14 to 16 who live in rural and urban areas of southwest Spain, in the province of Huelva. A mixed methodology was used: a sample of 400 young people responded to a questionnaire, as the quantitative instrument; and, applied to capture the perceptions of this population, a representative sample of 33 young people was formed according to the saturation criterion of the discourse that emerged in the in-depth interviews and discussion groups. The results show that female adolescents believe in the myths of romantic love more than males, with the exception of jealousy, which is a more masculine belief that is embedded in an identity manifestation of what they consider to be loving behavior. The social networks most closely associated with the manifestation of romantic myths and jealousy among this age group are Instagram and Snapchat, and a notable digital gender divide was apparent. We start observing the need for public policies to address the prevention and promotion of healthy behaviors of the use of social networks among the youngest population.
Keywords: romantic love, social networks, adolescence, digital gender divide
