The Impact Of Digital Experiences On Adolescents With Mental Health Vulnerabilities | Redefining Society With Sonia Livingstone

Since when technology has entered our daily life, every new generation of parents has to deal with their children's education on how to use and not to use it. Things got more complicated, from not listening to Rock'n'roll music to not watching too much TV to video games and now everything the internet brings us. "No" is the easy button but not the correct one. It is a complex world online, and it has become harder and harder to understand the dynamics that shape our interaction with this new techno reality. It is even harder for adolescents, and it gets even more complex when we consider those groups of adolescents facing mental health problems.

“Public and policy debates often link rising rates of adolescents’ mental health problems to increasing internet use. But these debates have not always been rigorously grounded in evidence concerning both possible benefits and harms. There is a gap in understanding between those who are experts in mental health and those with expertise in the culture, political economy and regulation of the digital environment, hence many questions remain. Can adolescents’ internet use increase the risk of poor mental health and what aspects of ‘the internet’ matter? Can digital technologies support adolescents’ mental health, whether by placing barriers on the pathway to harm or by introducing online help?“ 

Can adolescents’ internet use increase the risk of eating disorders, self-harm and overall poor mental health?

Can internet use support adolescents’ mental health, whether by placing barriers on the pathway to harm or by introducing online help?

What aspects of “the internet” matter? The research highlights the multidimensional nature of digital engagement, going beyond straightforward ideas of “internet use.”

In this podcast, I spoke about all of this and more with Dr. Sonia Livingstone, following our conversation about a year ago. 

You can catch up on that one here: Book | Parenting For A Digital Future. How Hopes And Fears About Technology Shape Children's Lives | An Audio Signals Conversation With Sonia Livingstone
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Guest
Sonia Livingstone
Professor of Social Psychology at London School of Economics and Political Science [@MediaLSE]
On LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/sonia-livingstone-6b0b8712/
On Twitter | https://twitter.com/Livingstone_S
On YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLllmmic_r3ou4l8rd5mOlgq5xxFVUTsQE
LSE Profile | https://www.lse.ac.uk/media-and-communications/people/academic-staff/sonia-livingstone

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Resources
New book Parenting for a Digital Future: How hopes and fear about technology shape children’s lives

Projects:

• Children’s Rights in the Digital Age
• Digital Futures Commission
• Playful by Design
• Children Online: Research & Evidence (CO:RE)
• ySKILLS (YouthSkills)
• Children’s Data and Privacy Online
• Global Kids Online
• EU Kids Online
• euCONSENT

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This Episode’s Sponsors

Bugcrowd 👉 https://itspm.ag/itspbgcweb

BlackCloak 👉 https://itspm.ag/itspbcweb

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