[T]he current study uses a RAD [replicable, agreeable, and data supported] approach to answer the question: how is digital technology affecting the composing process through a qualitative examination and analysis of the literary practices of Generation Y? Generation Y, which includes those born in 1997 or later, has never known to compose without digital technology; they are the generation most affected by digital technology, and their writing skills and processes have been influenced by digital technologies in a way that is different from any previous generations, all of which have been influenced by the technologies of their day, respectively. Based on what we know about perception and the tools that digital technology provides students while they are writing, I argue that technology limits writers' autonomy regarding organization and structure when compared to writers whose processes are completed without digital technology. I further argue writers who do not use digital technology to compose are more aware of their sentence structure and word choice.

In order to investigate these claims and to learn more about how digital technology shapes the composing process of adolescents, I studied eighth-grade students composing academic writing both with and without digital technology. In this thesis, I explain my RAD research methodology and deploy these methods to analyze students' composing decisions. Finally, I describe the results of the study and offer insight into writers' composing processes. This information will contribute to the composition field's understanding of student composing processes and the broader academic understanding of digital writing.