Empowering Parents: Proven
Methods to Ensure Online Safety for Kids and Teens
Controversial policy
proposals like the Children's Online Safety Act (KOSA) are moving across the country, but there are other ways to
protect young people in the digital world
The Internet can be a risky place. There
are endless streams full of
messages that contain graphic sexual and violent content, glorify eating disorders,
encourage self-harm or promote discriminatory and hurtful views. People often
share too much personal information with an overly public audience, which includes cyberbullies
and malicious strangers. And
they also risk wasting time:
by spending hours online, they can miss
out on experiences and growth opportunities that exist elsewhere. These problems are especially acute for children
and young people, and
new laws that try to
protect young people from
the negative effects of the
Internet have serious consequences
minuses Scientific American spoke with experts about the best evidence-based ways to keep kids
safe online.
Young people spend a large part of
their lives on the Internet. According
to a study by the non-profit organization
Common Sense and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, the majority of teenagers in the
United States spend most of their waking hours in front of connected screens. Children under 13 are
not far behind; they spend more than five hours online every day.
Although the exact effects of online activity are not yet well understood, it is clear that what happens on the Internet is important to the well-being of young people. "I don't know if we can say 'cause and effect' right now," says
Mary Alvord, a psychologist who specializes in child and adolescent
care and is an associate professor at the George Washington
University School of Medicine. "But we can make correlational claims," he adds, noting
that excessive time spent on social media has been linked to poor mental health in children and adolescents.
Both the US Surgeon General and the American Psychological Association
issued health advisories earlier this year about the potential harm of
online social media to young
people. Each piece of
advice is clear: there
are benefits and risks
to being online, and more work needs to be done to understand and mitigate the downsides.
In recent months, lawmakers
have enacted and implemented policies seemingly designed to do just
that. Several states
have age restrictions for certain types of online content. On a national level, the Children's Online Safety Act
(KOSA) passed out of a
Senate committee and awaits consideration on the legislative floor. However, experts disagree on whether age restrictions and sweeping
policies like KOSA
are meant to help or
harm young people.
Supporters of KOSA,
including the American Psychological Association, say the legislation could be
a positive first step in holding
tech companies accountable for their effects. In contrast, critics such as the American Civil Liberties
Union worry that some
of its provisions reduce internet freedoms, limit access to information and
penalize vulnerable populations such as LGBTQ+ youth, leaving policing and defining harmful content to
state officials who make their own policies agendas Earlier
this month, one of
the bill's sponsors, Tennessee
Sen. Marsha Blackburn, appeared
to use KOSA in
her state to prevent minors from receiving transgender information. Jamie
Susskind, Sen. Blackburn's legislative
director, denied the senator's
claim of using KOSA to censor trans content. "KOSA does not target or
censor any individual or community," Susskind
posted on X (formerly Twitter).*
However, these
controversial practices are not the
only way to promote Internet safety. Other
legislative measures less
focused on censorship can help, as
can clarifying content guidelines and better social media planning. Additionally, digital safety researchers and psychologists
agree that involving families,
schools and youth would have a significant impact on safe children.
Digital privacy legislation is one alternative policy that can improve the online environment. "When people's data
is treated in a respectful, transparent
and accountable way, it actually results in a whole range of security risks being mitigated," says Sonia Livingstone, a social
psychologist who studies children
and online media at the London School of Economics and Politics. . Science.
Child/youth internet safety: A category-based
approach
Cyberbullying
Some cases of cyberbullying are clearly recognizable by the language and
tactics used to harass and/or intimidate the victim
online. Considering the
problematic/harmful behavior, it can sometimes be difficult to determine when
an activity crosses
the line from misconduct to
a more serious - and
possibly criminal - crime. However, researchers
generally characterize cyberbullying as an act that uses a technological device. to intimidate or convey intent to harm. Communication often
involves the repetition
of actions and an
imbalance of power between the victim and the perpetrator.
When discussing cyberbullying,
repetition means that the communication is repeated and the harm
is intentionally caused—usually not a one-time incident. A power imbalance generally refers to a dynamic that gives the bully power over the victim(s). In traditional
personal bullying, power imbalances often manifest
as physical strength, size, or other strategic advantages. The power
imbalance in cyberbullying can
be understood in
a number of different ways. For example, the bully may be more familiar with
the Internet than the victim. A bully can also maintain anonymity: no physical
force is needed to
maintain power, as a cyber bully
can protect his identity from the victim for a long time.
This ability to hide identity
can also lead to cyberbullying by people who may not engage in
bullying in a traditional context. Additionally,
the fact that it is
difficult or impossible to remove
content in cyberspace can leave a victim
feeling powerless or humiliated, which
can sometimes prevent them
from seeking help from an adult.
Prevalence
There are many similarities between the motives
and nature of traditional
bullying and cyberbullying. Some 4,444 researchers point to many of the same risks young people face online. For
example, there is "often a connection between school
bullying and cyberbullying".6 The
strong overlap between traditional in-person bullying and cyberbullying motives—namely revenge
and the use of power—has led
many researchers to propose school bullying. and community-wide
strategies to address the underlying climate and causes of peer bullying. Bullying can start offline and continue
online or vice versa, although in
some cases the cyberbullies and the victims do not
know each other in the offline world. School- and community-based initiatives to improve young people's relationships and
attitudes with and toward each other are considered potentially effective preventive interventions, although more research is needed to determine which
programs and strategies are most effective.
Different studies of cyberbullying tend to produce different statistics. There is no clear consensus on the prevalence of
cyberbullying, especially compared to traditional bullying. Furthermore, there is limited evidence on the growth
of cyberbullying and
whether (and to what extent) it can partially replace offline
bullying. Different definitions
and research methodologies
used by researchers also affect the
lack of agreement between
statistics compiled by
different studies. For example, researchers report figures for youth who are victims
of cyberbullying that can be as high as 72 percent or 4 percent.8 Although most studies report numbers between
6 and 30 percent,9 a more longitudinal survey method based on a more standardized definition of cyberbullying would make the studies less susceptible. to differences in the perceptions and interpretations of young people.10 This is especially
true due to the fact
that young people (and
some researchers) interpret the term 'bullying'. " otherwise, making it difficult to
develop consistency in analyzing their responses to surveys about online behavior. Some researchers warn against using the word "bullying" or "cyberbullying",
especially in schools. They prefer the use of the word "victimization" which can
describe a number of
negative behaviors that must be addressed immediately by school
and community leadership. Based
on recent media and community
awareness efforts, the word "bully" is a broad term for children, encompassing
"everything imaginable from bad behavior—from eyeball rolling "I don't want to be your friend" to sexual assault." Dorothy Espelage of the University of
Illinois wrote that the overuse of the word bullying "has really clouded our ability to focus
on what's going on with
children." The term is often used to refer to
activities or behaviors that "are normative or part of being human (eg saying something bad when angry). or you make an honest mistake
that you later regret)."15 Characterize all
negative behavior as bullying may
prevent children from seeking help from adults if they fear the adult will overreact and make problems worse by drawing
unwanted attention. This often happens when adults. confuse
bullying with bullying. for "behavior that is not severe and functional".16 That is, behavior that may not fit
a certain definition of harassment (eg, may fall
outside a certain definition
of "harassment"). . in
school politics.) could still warrant intervention as an additional cause, which is why some researchers recommend viewing negative behavior as a
"sacrifice".
Motives:
There
are various reasons why
criminals choose to engage
in cyberbullying. However, among young people who have admitted to other bullying, there is often talk of
revenge for retaliatory abuse. Cyberspace has become the new platform to bully people who may be too scared or
weak to bully in
traditional ways.
making them easier to identify.18 Young cyberbullies
also cite the ability to maintain anonymity
and reach a wider audience as reasons why they began victimizing
other young people online. Importantly, since anonymity can often
be maintained and participating in cyberbullying
requires only the most basic knowledge of the Internet, young
cyberbullies do not yet have a set of clearly defined characteristics. Any young person
– from a straight A student to a class. clown - may be a cyber bully.
Preventive/coping strategies.
The more basic preventive strategies (which can
be employed within the broader context of internet safety as well) include:
• encouraging youth not to disclose any
identifying information online
• utilizing IP addresses to track and block
problematic visitors
• switching online user accounts if harassment
begins.
Like traditional bullying, cyberbullying among
peers can be placed within a broader social context. Adults and youth often
have disparate interpretations of online victimization. For example, in some
cases, adults are more inclined to consider certain actions cyberbullying,
which youth might describe as drama between peers (that often began with an
issue offline). Thus, researchers often encourage schools to develop
“cyberbullying policies” to reduce and address cyberbullying between
classmates. Such policies can also facilitate the creation of a school-wide
bullying prevention program, as well as enable annual evaluations of the
effectiveness of these programs. Successful and effective programs work to
promote anti-bullying strategies at each level within the school—”from
individual students and classrooms to anti-bullying teams that combine
educators and students.
Where more work is needed.
Developing a consensus on the definition of
cyberbullying (and categories of cyberbullying behaviors) would be beneficial
for future research. It is important to acknowledge that parents, educators,
and youth may have different perceptions of what constitutes cyberbullying. In
addition, it is important to identify which preventive strategies and programs
are most effective in discouraging cyberbullying and Internet aggression by
youth. Further, there is not yet a clear understanding of the demographic
factors (gender, age, socioeconomic status, and race, etc.) associated with
likelihood of becoming a cyberbully or cyber victim. Research in this realm
could help communities design more individualized and effective prevention
programs. These could include home-, school-, or community-based strategies.
Definition
Sexual temptation/unwanted exposure to sexual content
There is a large body of literature that examines sexual harassment or unwanted sexual solicitation of adults and other young people. Sexual harassment is requests that involve sexual contact, sexual conversation, sending or requesting sexual photos or publishing unwanted sexual information. "Aggressive sexual solicitation" can also include solicitation that occurs offline, whether by phone, mail or in person. Unwanted or unintentional exposure to sexual content means a situation where young people are exposed to ambiguous content. or sexual images/videos if you are looking for non-sexual content. This can happen during web searches, pop-ups, email scams, or when young people inadvertently open problematic links in emails or instant messages.
Prevalence.
According to the results of the
2005 Youth Internet Safety Survey, one in seven of 4,444 American youths experienced an unwanted sexual solicitation
as defined above. This
statistic, and that of the
first
iteration of this study, which reported
1 in 5 young people, is often cited
in prevalence studies of
online threats. However, two-thirds of young recipients reported that they did not find
Preventive/resolution
measures.
The most commonly suggested strategy for
dealing with unwanted sexual solicitations is to encourage or help youth block
the solicitor or leave the online forum in which they are encountered. Some
children directly confront the solicitor by telling them to stop, while others
simply ignore them. By and large, however, very few children actually report
cases of unwanted solicitation to their parents or other authority figures. The
Youth Internet Safety Survey in 2005 found that most children who experience
aggressive online solicitations did not mention the solicitations to anyone. Similarly, most youth opted to deal with encounters with unwanted sexual
material by immediately leaving (exiting the window) the site, or blocking it
altogether.
where
more work is needed.
As noted above, few children tend to involve
parents or authority figures after receiving sexual solicitation or coming
across unwanted sexual content. It would thus be useful to explore how parents
and authority figures can play a more active role in protecting children from
such encounters. In particular, it would be useful to have more definitive
research regarding how filtering and firewall technologies can be employed more
effectively, and whether other partnerships (e.g., with companies that provide
Internet access, search, content and other services) can facilitate safer
environments for children.
Privacy
awareness.
While there is plenty of room to improve
privacy awareness, youth are “far from being nonchalant and unconcerned about
privacy matters.” For example, a majority of youth who have Facebook profiles
modify their privacy settings “at least to some extent” to contain their
information and pictures within a specific audience. More broadly, 62 percent of
teens surveyed in one study have their social media accounts set to “private”
altogether, while only 17 percent made their information public.40 In a
different study, 81 percent of surveyed teens who use social networking sites
reported using privacy settings to safeguard personal information.41 In
addition 70 percent of teens in yet another study stated that they have sought
advice on how to manage their online privacy
Parent and community involvement
The measures taken by adults (parents,
educators, and government employees) to safeguard youth from online risks often
include:
• monitoring youth (through online technologies
and software, or in-person supervision)
• educating youth about potential risks
• attempting to teach appropriate online
behaviors.
Parental perception of youth safety online.
Most parents report that online activities are
generally beneficial for youth, and feel that their children are safe online.
42 percent of parents surveyed by the Family Online Safety Institute felt their
child was very safe online. 44 percent felt their child was somewhat safe
online. Only 3 percent of parents felt their child was very unsafe online, and
10 percent felt their child was somewhat unsafe. Studies generally report that
parents are most concerned about children viewing sexually explicit information
or pictures online, or communicating with strangers. 93 percent of parents
surveyed by the Family Online Safety Institute said that they had conversations
with their children about these risks, and have set rules or limits for their
children’s online activities. However, only 61 percent of youth reported having
such conversations with their parents, which indicates a disconnect between the
generations that might be explained by differences youth and parents have in
the connotation of terms used to discuss online activities and risks.
Parental
guidance.
Most parents report that it is relatively easy
to “exercise guidance and supervision over their child’s use of various media,”
although surveys of youth and parents report a significant disconnect between
parental perception of youth online activity and actual youth experiences. 39
percent of teens surveyed by Hart Research Associates responded that their
parents monitor their online activities “very” or “somewhat” closely, though 84
percent of parents responded that they monitor their children’s activities
“very” or “somewhat” closely. Similarly, 91 percent of parents said they are
well informed about what their teens do online and on their mobile phones,
while only 60 percent of teens surveyed say their parents are well informed.
Part of the divide between parent and youth perception of their monitoring of
online activities stem from the fact that some parents take measures to protect
their children’s online safety of which their children are unaware. The
difference in interpretation of terms like “monitoring” accounts for some of
the difference in understanding youth experiences as well.
Views of
Online Safety.
Confidence in the safety and benefits of online
experiences “declines the older the child gets, and the more time he or she
spends online.”50 Still, as cited above, an overwhelming majority of teens and
parents surveyed by Hart Research Associates reported believing that youth are
either “very” or “somewhat” safe online.51 When asked an open-ended question
about what being safe online entails, 25 percent of teens mentioned issues of
privacy and “ensuring no one has access to personal or identifying
information.” 17 percent of youth “say safety means preventing harm or
harassment.” The biggest concern among parents regarding youth online safety is
“avoiding ‘stranger danger’ scenarios,’” followed closely by protecting teens’
privacy and personal information.
Recommendations
Ensuring maximally effective policy decisions
regarding youth/child Internet safety will require additional research in the
following areas:
• A better understanding is needed regarding
the role of demographic factors in shaping online risk and appropriate
responses.65
• Most existing research on cyberbullying is
based on surveys of youth and parents, with terms defined by the researchers
and varying between studies. Conducting a longitudinal study incorporating
participant observation, in-depth interviews, and a study of the dynamics and
relationships in the relevant social networks is likely to reveal more precise
information about the relationship between cyberbullying and the social context
in which it occurs.66
• The use of mobile devices by youth has
increased dramatically in the past few years. More work is needed to understand
how this shift impacts online safety, and the extent to which mobile
technologies may be “deviance amplifying.”67
• A better understanding of the specific role
that mobile devices may also play in promoting online safety is needed. As a
2012 publication from the Family Online Safety Institute noted, “mobile devices
present
the greatest opportunity to educate parents
about the parental control technologies available, including smartphone controls
and downloadable apps.”
• Many of the intergenerational gaps in
understanding Internet safety can be attributed to a lack of communication
between parents and their children. Thus, attention to the design of programs
and tools to better facilitate that communication in the contemporary
technology environment would be helpful in creating more effective prevention
and response measures.
• While there has been some attention to
“outreach measures” that parents and youth find helpful in raising awareness
and augmenting understanding about Internet safety, tailoring strategies to
particular youth and school environments will make them more effective. A
“one-size fits all” type of messaging has sometimes dominated the Internet
safety field. As ConnectSafely.org co-founder Larry Magid has observed, it is
also important to consider adopting a public health approach that takes risk
profiles of different demographics into consideration.
• Behaviors such as cyberbullying or online
sexual harassment of children and youth often go unreported, or are reported
only after many weeks, months, or years. Research on ways to encourage
children/youth to more proactively report these situations at their inception
could be valuable in mitigating the resulting harms.
• When assessing the prevalence of phenomena
like cyberbullying or online sexual harassment, it would be useful to have a
standardized definition (or a set of standardized definitions that researchers
can easily cite) outlining what such phenomena entail. While youth will
experience episodes of cyberbullying or sexual harassment differently, having a
standardized framework enables more accurate comparisons of results from
different studies, and would also help in the design of new studies.
• While there are many educational programs and
policy initiatives that work to promote youth/child Internet safety, more
evidence- and data-based evaluations of which programs are most effective are
needed to better inform future policies and program implementation.
• More work is needed to better understand the
impact adults and older peers have in role modeling appropriate online Internet
behaviors. In particular, a better understanding of the impact that the
increasingly blurred lines between adults’ online and offline interactions
(including, but not limited to, online dating and hiring services) have on
youth perception of online risks and safety is needed.
• The near complete integration of cameras into
mobile phones has led to a “selfie” culture that puts youth in an unprecedented
position: they now have the power to produce their own potentially problematic
content featuring images of themselves. Such content raises many potential
concerns, including the possibility that shared images could later be used in
exploitative ways. More research is needed to discern how best to reduce the
creation, distribution, and exploitation of this content.
