Humanism and Overcoming Digital Alienation by Russian Teenagers and Young People

Modern authors, including D. Ivanov, Yu. Asochakov, S. Dudnik, note the emergence of a new form of alienation — digital alienation. This form is characterized by individualization of experience and the search for ways to overcome alienation, the determination of communication through digital interfaces, and the absence of collective forms of resistance. Despite the extensive body of work devoted to the problem of digital alienation, this topic remains poorly studied in relation to adolescents and young people. Hence, the goal of the study is to describe the construction of digital alienation through digital practices and practices of overcoming it by adolescents and young people. According to the results of the study, one of the main mechanisms for the formation of digital alienation by adolescents is the mediation of communication through digital interfaces, which creates an unstable communication format. Discipline and supervision, implemented through the notification system of programs on digital devices, also make a significant contribution. The stability of the alienation being formed is due to the perception of digital devices as organically necessary for communication, like one's own body. Adolescents most often overcome alienation by shifting their focus from mediated digital communication to face-to-face interpersonal communication, as well as by refusing notifications or using certain apps. Such practices contribute to the attainment of freedom from interfaces, that is, the attainment of humanism in existential terminology. This article is aimed at researchers in the field of digital alienation, as well as practitioners working with at-risk adolescents, since alienation is a significant risk factor for delinquent behavior.