how safe are social networking sites to

How Safe Are Social Networking Sites To Children?

Despite the recent focus on restricting access to social networking

Web sites to protect children, researchers have found that

victimization online is more likely to occur through instant messaging

and in chat rooms.

The Growing up With Media survey asked nearly 1,600 Internet users

between the ages of 10 to 15 about their online experiences over the

past year. Fifteen percent reported an unwanted sexual solicitation in

that time, with about one-fourth of those occurring on a social

networking site. Thirty-three percent reported online harassment, with

about one-fourth of the incidents occurring on a social networking

site.

Among targeted youth, solicitations were reported to be via instant

messaging (43 percent of incidents) or in chat rooms (32 percent of

incidents). Harassment was more common in instant messaging (55

percent of incidents). The authors suggest that parents should focus

on children's online behaviors and psychosocial issues rather than on

restricting use of social networking sites.

They also recommend that policy aimed at reducing children's

victimization on the Internet focus on mental health interventions for

vulnerable youth, and broad Internet safety education.

The research information is available from the February ssue of

Pediatrics, the peer-reviewed, scientific journal of the American

Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

tag: Social networking, childhood, children, Growing up With Media

survey, online harassment, instant messaging, Internet safety

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