DIGITAL SHADOWS: SOCIAL MEDIA AS A CATALYST FOR DEVIANT BEHAVIOR AMONG YOUTH

Abstract

This article examines the relationship between social media use and deviant behavior among youth, with a particular focus on the Uzbek social context. Social media platforms — including Instagram, TikTok, Telegram, and YouTube — have fundamentally transformed the social environment in which contemporary youth develop their identities, values, and behavioral norms. Drawing on social learning theory, strain theory, and social comparison theory, this study argues that social media functions as a powerful catalyst for deviant behavior through four primary mechanisms: normalization of deviant content, intensification of social comparison and relative deprivation, weakening of traditional social control, and creation of anonymous spaces for deviant interaction. Empirical data from Uzbekistan's official statistics and recent sociological research are integrated to contextualize these global processes within Uzbekistan's specific social landscape. The article concludes with evidence-based recommendations for digital literacy education and social media-aware deviance prevention programs.