Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants Part 2: Do They Really Think Differently?
Abstract
Part 2 of Prensky’s paper exploring the differences between “digital natives” and “digital immigrants”. In this second part the author presents evidence to support these differences from neurology, social psychology and from studies done on children using games for learning.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Incorporating both physical and online resources will assist students to achieve effective e-learning for these digital natives.
“This will assist students to incorporate both physical and online resources to achieve effective e-learning for these digital natives (Mpungose', 2019a;Prensky, 2001).”
From Emergent transition from face-to-face to online learning in a South African University in the context of the Coronavirus pandemic (2020) · cites this paper as Prensky, 2001
These elements can have consequences on the emotional, cognitive, and psychosocial development of children and teenagers that are still largely unexplored.
“These elements can have consequences [9] on the emotional, cognitive, and psychosocial development of children and teenagers that are still largely unexplored.”
From Internet use and access, behavior, cyberbullying, and grooming: Results of an investigative whole city survey of adolescents (2017) · cites this paper as [9]
Although in the 1990s an overall pessimistic conception supported by numerous studies prevailed, the current picture appears to be more optimistic.
“Although in the 1990s an overall “pessimistic” conception supported by numerous studies [44] prevailed, the current picture appears to be more optimistic [21,2,8,42,9]”
From Internet use and access, behavior, cyberbullying, and grooming: Results of an investigative whole city survey of adolescents (2017) · cites this paper as [9]
Cites
Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants
(2012) · Corwin Press eBooks · doi:10.4135/9781483387765.n6 · Cited by 7,114 · see citing works
Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants
Repique, R. J. R. (2013) · Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association · doi:10.1177/1078390313481999 · Cited by 3,252 · see citing works
Making Connections: Teaching and the Human Brain
Caine, R. N., & Caine, G. (1991) · Cited by 932 · see citing works
Question Asking During Tutoring
Graesser, A. C., & Person, N. K. (1994) · American Educational Research Journal · doi:10.3102/00028312031001104 · Cited by 900 · see citing works
Breeuwsma, G. (2000) · University of Groningen research database (University of Groningen / Centre for Information Technology) · Cited by 769 · see citing works
Mind and Media: The Effects of Television, Video Games, and Computers
Greenfield, P. M. (1984) · Thammasat University Digital Collections · Cited by 338 · see citing works
Young People and Social Networks: Motivations and Preferred Uses
Bravo, M. P. C., Ramírez, T. G., & Pons, J. D. P. (2013) · Comunicar · doi:10.3916/c40-2013-02-01 · Cited by 228 · see citing works
The Myth of the First Three Years
Bruer, J. T. (1999) · Cited by 132 · see citing works
Greenfield, P. M. (2014) · Psychology Press eBooks · doi:10.4324/9781315735634 · Cited by 118 · see citing works
Menores y redes ¿sociales?: de la amistad al cyberbullying
del Río-Pérez, J., Sádaba, C., & Bringué, X. (2010) · Revista de Estudios de Juventud · Cited by 47 · see citing works
Diferencias en el consumo audiovisual y multimedia de los menores: entorno rural y urbano
Lazo, C. M., & Barroso, J. A. G. (2009) · RACO (Revistes Catalanes amb Accés Obert) (Consorci de Serveis Universitaris de Catalunya) · Cited by 27 · see citing works
Health Education Video Games for Children and Adolescents: Theory, Design, and Research Findings.
Lieberman, D. A. (1998) · Cited by 22 · see citing works
Los medios audiovisuales entre los progenitores y los hijos e hijas
Casas, F., Figuer, C., González, M., & Malo, S. (2007) · Culture and Education · doi:10.1174/113564007782194499 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
La privacidad del menor en internet.
Antón, A. M. G. (2013) · Revista de Derecho, Empresa y Sociedad (REDS) · Cited by 6 · see citing works
El nuevo delito de ciberacoso de menores a la luz del derecho comparado
Vázquez, J. A. R. (2011) · Diario La Ley · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
The ‘digital natives’ debate: A critical review of the evidence
Bennett, S., Maton, K., & Kervin, L. (2008) · British Journal of Educational Technology · doi:10.1111/j.1467-8535.2007.00793.x · Cited by 2,971 · see citing works
Who interacts on the Web?: The intersection of users’ personality and social media use
Correa, T., Hinsley, A. W., & de Zúñiga, H. G. (2010) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2009.09.003 · Cited by 1,915 · see citing works
Digital Na(t)ives? Variation in Internet Skills and Uses among Members of the “Net Generation”
Hargittai, E. (2010) · Sociological Inquiry · doi:10.1111/j.1475-682x.2009.00317.x · Cited by 1,564 · see citing works
Andreassen, C. S., Pallesen, S., & Griffiths, M. D. (2017) · Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2016.03.006 · Cited by 1,504 · see citing works
Facebook and academic performance
Kirschner, P. A., & Karpinski, A. C. (2010) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2010.03.024 · Cited by 1,578 · see citing works
Shea, P., Sau Li, C., & Pickett, A. (2006) · The Internet and Higher Education · doi:10.1016/j.iheduc.2006.06.005 · Cited by 740 · see citing works
Shea, P., & Bidjerano, T. (2009) · Computers & Education · doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2008.10.007 · Cited by 641 · see citing works
Livingstone, S., & Smith, P. K. (2014) · Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry · doi:10.1111/jcpp.12197 · Cited by 590 · see citing works
The relationships between behavioral addictions and the five-factor model of personality
Andreassen, C. S., Griffiths, M. D., Gjertsen, S. R., Krossbakken, E., Kvam, S., & Pallesen, S. (2013) · Journal of Behavioral Addictions · doi:10.1556/jba.2.2013.003 · Cited by 589 · see citing works
Clinical virtual simulation in nursing education: randomized controlled trial
Padilha, J. M., Machado, P. P., Ribeiro, A., Ramos, J., & Costa, P. (2019) · Journal of Medical Internet Research · doi:10.2196/11529 · Cited by 550 · see citing works
Students’ perception of Kahoot!’s influence on teaching and learning
Licorish, S. A., Owen, H. E., Daniel, B., & George, J. L. (2018) · Research and Practice in Technology Enhanced Learning · doi:10.1186/s41039-018-0078-8 · Cited by 521 · see citing works
Yilmaz, R. (2017) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2016.12.085 · Cited by 514 · see citing works
Media use and brain development during adolescence
Crone, E. A., & Konijn, E. A. (2018) · Nature Communications · doi:10.1038/s41467-018-03126-x · Cited by 464 · see citing works
Development of Korean Smartphone Addiction Proneness Scale for Youth
Kim, D., Lee, Y., Lee, J., Nam, J. K., & Chung, Y. (2014) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0097920 · Cited by 434 · see citing works
Mpungose, C. B. (2020) · Humanities and Social Sciences Communications · doi:10.1057/s41599-020-00603-x · Cited by 415 · see citing works
Manca, S., & Ranieri, M. (2013) · Journal of Computer Assisted Learning · doi:10.1111/jcal.12007 · Cited by 413 · see citing works
YouTube: An emerging tool in anatomy education
Jaffar, A. A. (2012) · Anatomical Sciences Education · doi:10.1002/ase.1268 · Cited by 360 · see citing works
Are young generations in secondary school digitally competent? A study on Italian teenagers
Calvani, A., Fini, A., Ranieri, M., & Picci, P. (2012) · Computers & Education · doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2011.10.004 · Cited by 318 · see citing works
Uses and gratifications sought by pre-adolescent and adolescent TikTok consumers
Bucknell Bossen, C., & Kottasz, R. (2020) · Young Consumers · doi:10.1108/yc-07-2020-1186 · Cited by 305 · see citing works
How Has the Internet Reshaped Human Cognition?
Loh, K. K., & Kanai, R. (2016) · The Neuroscientist · doi:10.1177/1073858415595005 · Cited by 272 · see citing works
Social media addiction: What is the role of content in YouTube?
Balakrishnan, J., & Griffiths, M. D. (2017) · Journal of Behavioral Addictions · doi:10.1556/2006.6.2017.058 · Cited by 266 · see citing works
Workplace literacy skills—how information and digital literacy affect adoption of digital technology
Nikou, S., De Reuver, M., & Mahboob Kanafi, M. (2022) · Journal of Documentation · doi:10.1108/jd-12-2021-0241 · Cited by 257 · see citing works
Adolescents’ sense of community on MySpace and facebook: A mixed-methods approach
Reich, S. M. (2010) · Journal of Community Psychology · doi:10.1002/jcop.20389 · Cited by 203 · see citing works
Moisala, M., Salmela, V., Hietajärvi, L., Salo, E., Carlson, S., Salonen, O., Lonka, K., Hakkarainen, K., Salmela-Aro, K., & Alho, K. (2016) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2016.04.011 · Cited by 200 · see citing works
Hadlington, L. J. (2015) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2015.04.036 · Cited by 180 · see citing works
Purchase decision of generation Y in an online environment
Prasad, S., Garg, A., & Prasad, S. (2019) · Marketing Intelligence & Planning · doi:10.1108/mip-02-2018-0070 · Cited by 172 · see citing works
The five resources of critical digital literacy: a framework for curriculum integration
Hinrichsen, J., & Coombs, A. (2014) · Research in Learning Technology · doi:10.3402/rlt.v21.21334 · Cited by 169 · see citing works
“But at the age of 85? Forget it!”: Internalized ageism, a barrier to technology use
Köttl, H., Gallistl, V., Rohner, R., & Ayalon, L. (2021) · Journal of Aging Studies · doi:10.1016/j.jaging.2021.100971 · Cited by 170 · see citing works
Wernhart, A., Gahbauer, S., & Haluza, D. (2019) · PLOS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0213067 · Cited by 152 · see citing works
Are digital natives open to change? Examining flexible thinking and resistance to change
Barak, M. (2018) · Computers & Education · doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2018.01.016 · Cited by 157 · see citing works
The influence of age in usability testing
Sonderegger, A., Schmutz, S., & Sauer, J. (2016) · Applied Ergonomics · doi:10.1016/j.apergo.2015.06.012 · Cited by 152 · see citing works
Chen, G., Cheng, W., Chang, T.-W., Zheng, X., & Huang, R. (2014) · Journal of Computers in Education · doi:10.1007/s40692-014-0012-z · Cited by 134 · see citing works
Myths About Older People’s Use of Information and Communication Technology
Wandke, H., Sengpiel, M., & Sönksen, M. (2012) · Gerontology · doi:10.1159/000339104 · Cited by 123 · see citing works
Smith, K. T. (2019) · Journal of Strategic Marketing · doi:10.1080/0965254x.2017.1384043 · Cited by 115 · see citing works
Judd, T., & Kennedy, G. (2011) · Computers & Education · doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2010.10.004 · Cited by 106 · see citing works
Zalpuri, I., Liu, H. Y., Stubbe, D., Wrzosek, M., Sadhu, J., & Hilty, D. (2018) · Academic Psychiatry · doi:10.1007/s40596-018-0983-6 · Cited by 93 · see citing works
Baumgartner, S. E., van der Schuur, W. A., Lemmens, J. S., & te Poel, F. (2018) · Human Communication Research · doi:10.1093/hcre.12111 · Cited by 91 · see citing works
Social media and dentistry: some reflections on e-professionalism
Neville, P., & Waylen, A. (2015) · British Dental Journal · doi:10.1038/sj.bdj.2015.294 · Cited by 91 · see citing works
Internet addiction and its facets: the role of genetics and the relation to self-directedness
Hahn, E., Reuter, M., Spinath, F. M., & Montag, C. (2017) · Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2016.10.018 · Cited by 80 · see citing works
The decision to access patient information from a social media site: what would you do?
Jent, J. F., Eaton, C. K., Merrick, M. T., Englebert, N. E., Dandes, S. K., Chapman, A. V., & Hershorin, E. R. (2011) · Journal of Adolescent Health · doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2011.02.004 · Cited by 79 · see citing works
An embodied agent helps anxious students in mathematics learning
Kim, Y., Thayne, J., & Wei, Q. (2017) · Educational Technology Research and Development · doi:10.1007/s11423-016-9476-z · Cited by 70 · see citing works
(2023) · KSII Transactions on Internet and Information Systems · doi:10.3837/tiis.2023.08.016 · Cited by 60 · see citing works
Muñoz-Miralles, R., Ortega-González, R., Batalla-Martínez, C., López-Morón, M. R., Manresa, J. M., & Torán-Monserrat, P. (2014) · Atención Primaria · doi:10.1016/j.aprim.2013.06.001 · Cited by 51 · see citing works
Mentoring in the digital age: Social media use in adult-youth relationships
Schwartz, S. E. O., Rhodes, J. E., Liang, B., Sánchez, B., Spencer, R., Kremer, S., & Kanchewa, S. (2014) · Children and Youth Services Review · doi:10.1016/j.childyouth.2014.09.004 · Cited by 44 · see citing works
Millennial engineers: Digital media and information ecology of engineering students
Johri, A., Teo, H. J., Lo, J., Dufour, M., & Schram, A. (2014) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2013.01.048 · Cited by 42 · see citing works
Park, J., & Jung, Y. (2024) · Telematics and Informatics · doi:10.1016/j.tele.2024.102200 · Cited by 38 · see citing works
Students' perceptions of artificial intelligence integration in higher education
Slimi, Z., Benayoune, A., & Alemu, A. E. (2025) · European Journal of Educational Research · doi:10.12973/eu-jer.14.2.471 · Cited by 38 · see citing works
Effects of Action Video Game Experience on Change Detection
Durlach, P. J., Kring, J. P., & Bowens, L. D. (2009) · Military Psychology · doi:10.1080/08995600802565694 · Cited by 29 · see citing works
Forecasting errors in student media multitasking during homework completion
Calderwood, C., Green, J. D., Joy-Gaba, J. A., & Moloney, J. M. (2016) · Computers & Education · doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2015.10.021 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
Vismara, M. F. M., Toaff, J., Pulvirenti, G., Settanni, C., Colao, E., Lavano, S. M., Cemicetti, R., Cotugno, D., Perrotti, G., Meschesi, V., et al. (2017) · Interactive Journal of Medical Research · doi:10.2196/ijmr.6231 · Cited by 19 · see citing works
Exploring Digital Nativeness as a Predictor of Digital Game-Based L2 Vocabulary Acquisition
Calvo-Ferrer, J. R. (2020) · Interactive Learning Environments · doi:10.1080/10494820.2018.1548489 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Constancy (the New Media “C”) and Future Generations
Borzekowski, D. L. G. (2019) · Health Education & Behavior · doi:10.1177/1090198119863775 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
- Authors
- Prensky, M.
- Corresponding author
- Prensky, Marc
- Venue
- On the Horizon
- Publisher
- Emerald
- Published
- 2001-11
- Volume
- 9
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 1-6
- ISSN
- 1074-8121 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2114216000
- Cited by
- 4,035
- References
- 15
- Citations by year
- 2026: 156 · 2025: 201 · 2024: 230 · 2023: 225 · 2022: 189 · 2021: 275 · 2020: 212 · 2019: 223 · 2018: 276 · 2017: 241 · 2016: 284 · 2015: 264 · 2014: 218 · 2013: 252 · 2012: 195
- FWCI
- 15.70
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- On the Horizon The International Journal of Learning Futures (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Life-span and Life-course Studies › Generational Differences and Trends
- Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Computer Science Applications › Digital Media and Philosophy
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Learning Styles and Cognitive Differences
- Keywords
- digital natives, digital immigrants, generational differences, cognitive differences, neurology, social psychology, game-based learning, children
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review