Adolescents and Instant Messaging

What are the language and literacy practices of
adolescents as they engage in instant messaging in
the 21st century? The research described in this book
works to build an understanding of what youth are
doing when they are online. To do so, Jacobs draws on
two years of ethnographic data, including videotapes
of the actual in-the-moment construction of instant
messages as well as what was happening in the room
doing those online sessions. She uses Critical
Discourse Analysis and Cultural Historical Activity
Theory to make sense of the data and argues that
instant messaging is a dynamic and fluid activity
consisting of a mix of conventions. Macro-analysis
indicates that the outcome of engagement in instant
messaging is the construction of a person who is
adept at developing the skills, attributes, and
achievements necessary for success in the 21st
century economy.