Embedded Files
Stanford Social Media Lab
The Digital Strength Initiative
The internet has brought so many positive things to our lives: connection with family and friends, entertainment, and opportunities for education, among others. It also has a flipside: Sometimes it’s like trying to navigate a digital jungle where innocent missteps can have troubling consequences. Misinformation online – such as fraud, scams, false information – threatens people’s trust in institutions, organizations, and one another. Specific populations that are disproportionately targeted, such as older adults, minorities, and other groups, are especially at risk.
The Digital Strength Initiative is a coalition of partners formed to scale the work of the Social Media Lab by countering these forces. In an era of cascading information and an increasingly polarized world, the initiative seeks not to provide any version of the “truth.” Rather, it teaches people how to “flex” their digital strength by empowering them with the skills and autonomy to determine the authenticity of online information sources. This enables people to make better, more informed choices about important life decisions including civics, health, finances, and relationships.
Stanford Adolescents and Social Media Project
The Stanford Adolescents and Social Media Project uses evidence from the scientific literature to guide our understanding of the relationships between adolescents, social media and their well-being, with a focus on the family and providing support and resources to parents. We address and include research reports from organizations focused on youth and well-being, first hand experiences of adolescents and parents as we explore the questions, topics and intricacies of social media’s impact both positive and negative. Through a series of reports, we aim to provide parents with an evidence-based guide to help adolescents stay safe and thrive online.
Page updated
Report abuse