In the article "Taking Risks When Communicating on the Internet: The Role of Offline Social-Psychological Factors in Young People's Vulnerability to Online Risks," authors Sonia Livingstone
and Ellen J. Helsper contrast the real world and online relationships of teens. The article may be viewed by using the following link, http://bit.ly/WBs5N2. Through Livingstone and Helsper's research, it is made apparent that teens can display drastically different personalities while interacting online. I find the article fascinating as it affirms many of my personal ideas regarding teens and their use of social networks, primarily Facebook. I know of young people who are shy and withdrawn in their daily lives but become outgoing, and sometimes abrasive, when hiding behind what they perceive to be an anonymous online persona. Furthermore, I also know of friendships between teens that have been irreparably damaged as a result of unrestrained online personal attacks. It is the responsibility of parents to let their children know that their actions in the virtual world can have very real, very profound, effects on real world relationships. This understanding is essential as children grow in a world where an ever increasing reliance is being placed on social networks as vital modes of communication.
So I found this concept very interesting: How is social media affecting teens? I took it a step further and found an article that was sent through The Digital Shift on Twitter that looked at how the internet is affecting children in form of the marketing that is out there in games geared towards children. I think the internet whether it is social media, online games, or surfing the web has an impact on all segments of society. Children are one group that is vulnerable to the sneaky ways companies and individuals can deceive them. The following article gives ways that teachers, parents and librarians can help dialog with children about what they are seeing on the internet. I think this is something important to think about even with teens. Monitoring their online and offline interactions is crucial.
ReplyDeleteThis article brings up the concept of media literacy. Interesting ideas. Please take a look
http://www.thedigitalshift.com/2013/02/transliteracy/whos-playing-who-how-sneaky-online-marketing-is-targeting-kids-and-what-you-can-do-about-it/