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Post date: April 13, 2020 2:34 PM
Pop Quiz Time!
Question: what the heck are these?
Tik Tok, Roblox, Discord, Houseparty, MeetMe, Kik, Live.me, Whisper, Monkey, Yubo
Possible answers:
a) Gibberish. b) New #hashtags c) The apocalypse, because I am officially old. d) A new dance move?
These, are social networking apps.
We have the old faithfuls: Twitter, Myspace, Facebook, Instagram, Vine, Snapchat, WhatsApp – but more and more apps are being populated at an alarming rate. With the millions of apps, websites and other platforms for people to communicate through media that are all over the Internet these days, this is truly the age of social media. Teenagers – so, your Littles – are among the top users of most social media platforms. Whether it's updating a Facebook status, fitting a joke into 280 characters or uploading a sick selfie, we are on the Internet a lot. Social media is a huge part of our culture.
It is no longer the era of age, sex, location (AOL users, anyone?), but the level of disclosure reaches a level that is troubling for us, and once they put this information online, they will never get it back. Since Littles are often trying to catch the attention of and gain approval from their peers, some tend to post content to appear popular or to gain a response. Some examples include: teens jockey for status, post risqué pictures, brag about the previous weekend’s adventures. Unfortunately, all of this can turn this 'fun digital space' to humiliate others or post inappropriate content. No information is truly private in the online world; a harmless joke can turn into cyberbullying, a comment on a Facebook photo can start an all-out war – the possibilities are endless.
Just give a LITTLE encouragement...
Here are tips you can pass along in helping your Little stay in control of their online reputation:
o Don’t post information, photos, or videos you might regret later. Think about your online image (Who will see this? What will they think?)
o Once you put it on the Internet, it’s out of your control. Forever.
o Want to get back at someone? Don’t do it online. Kids have been suspended and even arrested for posting threatening messages.
o Remember, it doesn’t take very long for a text message or online content to travel. Something that you regret saying now could be all over your school in a matter of minutes. Consider how fast information and mages get forwarded to people beyond your group of friends via texting, IM, and e-mail – especially sexually explicit ones.
o Talk to a trusted adult about any information you receive or see online that makes you scared or uncomfortable.
o Keep your personal information private.
o Only add friends you know in real life.
o Never meet in person with anyone you first met online.
o Contact the site administrator if someone makes a page in your name.
o Don’t post your plans or whereabouts on your site.
o Never post sexually provocative photos
Worried yet? Let's look at a few statistics...
72% of teens have a social networking profile and nearly half (47%) have a public profile that anyone can view
More than 59% of US teenagers have experienced bullying or harassment online.
with 42% of teens saying they’ve been called offensive names.
Around 32% said that someone had spread false rumors about them online.
25% said they had received unwanted explicit images.
21% of teens said that they had been harassed about their whereabouts and what they are doing or with who.
16% of the teens surveyed said that they received physical threats on the internet.
64% of students who were victims of cyberbullying said that it affected their ability to learn and feel safe at school.
15% of young cyberbullying victims would prefer to keep the issue a secret.
37% of bullying victims develop social anxiety.
A survey of adolescents in the 10-17 age range showed that:
About 12% were the perpetrators of online aggression in the past year.
About 4% said they were the target of harassment on the internet
3% of respondents said that they were both a victim and a perpetrator.
22% of teens log on to their favorite social site more than 10 times a day.
More than 50% of adolescents log on to a social media site more than once a day.
Teens often include the following information on their social networking profiles:
o Real age (50%)
o Photos of themselves (62%)
o City they live in (41%)
o School name/location (45%)
o Videos of friends (16%)
o Videos of themselves (14%)
o Their cell phone number (14%)
o Places where they typically go (9%)
If anything comes up, please inform your Match Support Specialist immediately. We can provide additional resources. And try not to Google the other social networking sites... it may frighten you!
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