Cultivating Digital Literacy among the Smartphone Generation

There is no arguing that the internet offers more ways to socialise, learn and connect online than many of us could have imagined 10 or 20 years ago. But it also presents more potential risks, particularly for young, impressionable minds, than anyone could have foreseen.

In addition to the very real possibility that children and adolescents may encounter harmful content such as pornographic or violent images and videos, misinformation, self-harm and suicide content, cyberbullying, sexting and, most recently, 'sextortion', there is also the question of what effect unfettered access to such powerful technology is having at a crucial time in young people’s development.

The younger generations who have grown up with smartphones may be considered 'digital natives', but that doesn’t necessarily mean they are 'digitally literate'. As parents, it is our duty to keep our children safe, and teaching them to use their devices and navigate the online world responsibly has become an essential part of raising happy, resilient children.

Here, we will look at the issues and what we, as adults and caregivers, can do to minimise the risks.

Are Smartphones Rewiring Young Minds?

It cannot be mere coincidence, Jonathan Haidt argues in his book, The Anxious Generation, that since the early 2010s – when smartphones replaced flip phones and the internet went high speed – rates of anxiety and depression among the generation that grew up with these technologies have skyrocketed. Self-harm and suicide among young girls rose dramatically in that decade, loneliness also spiked, and academic achievement declined.

Where previously children used to play with friends after-school, now they go home and scroll on their phones. In the developed world, over 90% of children have a smartphone by age 11, and teenagers report spending anything from five to nine hours a day on their phones, mostly on social media.

Not only are they missing out on physical activity, spending time outdoors and exploring the world around them, they are missing out on human connection. Yes, they may be gaming, texting or messaging with friends, but that does not replace face-to-face interactions. In fact, in a US poll, teenagers reported using their phones to 'avoid social interaction'.

In-person socialising, it seems, has become uncomfortable and anxiety-inducing for young people. This, it has been argued, is because real-world interactions, which occur in real time, require us to read body language, tone of voice and facial expressions, to practice timing and conversation turn-taking, and to be sensitive to the many nuances of human relationships. But for young people who converse largely online, these subtleties are missing, which is making them feel awkward about face-to-face socialising and it is impacting their emotional intelligence and resilience. The rise in calls for trigger warnings and safe spaces is evidence of just how difficult young people are finding navigating the real world.

The brain is also undergoing profound changes during adolescence. This is when young people start to develop their sense of self and form attachments with people other than their parents – generally their peers or those they spend time with online. At the same time that they are developing their own individual identity, they also feel an intense need to fit in and be accepted by their peers. And in the digital age, fitting in or being popular is measured in likes, followers, comments and shares.

The parts of the brain that control decision-making, impulse control and risk assessment are not fully developed in adolescents, explains Sutton Burke, Owner and Clinical Director of Infinite Mindcare. They are more likely to take risks because it feels rewarding, and they are not able to think through the consequences of their actions. Risky behaviour comes with the added bonus of peer approval – especially when it takes place, or is shared, online. This explains why this is the age group that is most likely to engage in cyberbullying and social media challenges, to share or post explicit content, or to view content promoting self-harm.

On the flip side, when young people do not find the attention and approval they crave on social media, anxiety and depression can follow. Equally, the constant exposure to the curated, idealised versions of others’ lives encourages young people to compare themselves to those they see online, resulting in them feeling inadequate or fearing they are missing out, which also leads to anxiety and low self-esteem.

But even if smartphones are a major contributor to the mental health issues so many children and adolescents are experiencing, taking phones away from an age group that desperately wants to fit in with their peers is clearly not the answer. However, just as we would not let teenagers jump in a car and drive without careful instruction beforehand, we should not hand over digital devices without ensuring young people know how to use them safely and responsibly. So how can we do that?

Establish Ground Rules

Keep an open dialogue
Talking about smartphone use and the potential pitfalls of the internet should be part of the daily conversation. Rather than sitting young people down for a 'big talk’, make discussing online content and interactions an ongoing conversation, so that they know they can seek your advice if they feel troubled or uncomfortable with what they encounter online.

Screen time
Establish appropriate time limits for younger children’s use of digital devices or negotiate screen time as conditional on outdoor activity, completion of homework or chores. While it may be almost impossible to control how much time adolescents spend online, there can certainly be house rules such as no phones at meal times or no phones in certain parts of the home, to encourage offline conversation and quality family time.

Social media
Most social media platforms do not allow users younger than 13 to open an account, but it only takes entering a fake age to get around this. Some parents make it a condition that if their child wishes to have social media accounts, they must friend one or both parents so that you can monitor their online activity.

Privacy and passwords
Again, depending on the age of your child, you may make it a condition of their screen use that you know their passwords and check their privacy settings.

Encourage integrity
Teach children to be respectful and compassionate online as well as offline. While it can be easy to speak harshly or make fun of someone online, remind your child that these are real people who can be just as hurt by online comments as face-to-face ones. Encourage them to think before they post and remind them that every comment leaves a digital footprint (read on for more information).

Model healthy internet habits
Actions speak louder than words, so demonstrate responsible online behaviour yourself. Be present and engaged – not distracted by your phone – and model healthy face-to-face communication when talking to your children or sitting down for dinner. Be open about the sites and apps you like, but also talk about the aspects you don’t like. Show them how to distinguish between ads and content, and between credible sources and unverified information or misinformation.

The Mechanics of the Internet

Teaching young people to use the internet responsibly also means ensuring they understand how it works and what the inherent dangers are. Explain the following:

No app is truly free
Google, Instagram, TikTok and other popular apps are not just there for your entertainment. Behind the fun reels, stories and photos are massive profit-driven corporations. These businesses have designed their algorithms to keep users on their site, allowing them to gather endless personal data which they then sell to third parties who use it to push targeted ads into your feed.

Once online, forever online
Every selfie, video or post you put online stays online in some form. Your selfies can be saved by others, digitally manipulated, and reposted, and even Snapchat snaps (designed to disappear after a set amount of time) can be screenshotted by others. It is therefore almost impossible to control what happens to what you put online. Even if you delete personal content from your own accounts, there is no controlling what others who see it may do with it. Think very carefully before sharing anything online, especially personal content like holiday photos.

Consider your digital footprint
Every like and comment, every photo you share and every video you post leaves a digital footprint. Even if it seems like harmless fun now, those footprints build your online reputation. In the future, colleges and potential employers will most likely look you up online to find out more about you, so any dubious footprint you leave now could harm your prospects in years to come.

Cultivate critical thinking
Just because you read, listen to or watch something online does not mean it is true. Content on platforms like YouTube, Instagram and TikTok is user-generated with users under no obligation to ensure their content is accurate. Show your children how to distinguish between ads and content, and between credible sources and unverified information or misinformation. Encourage them to cultivate a healthy scepticism of what they view online and encourage 'fact-checking' using reputable news sites.

Use the privacy settings
The best way to protect yourself from scams and unwanted contact requests is to use the privacy settings. Discuss and set up the privacy settings with your child, limiting access to contacts/friends and explaining the importance of avoiding requests from strangers to connect. Never share your address, phone number or other personal details on social media sites.

Online strangers are still strangers
Just because a stranger is online and not physically with you, does not mean they cannot harm you. Be very wary of friend requests from people you do not know in real life. Remember that behind the attractive profile photo of someone of a similar age to you, may lie a very different person. This is how online predators first connect with young people who they may then attempt to groom, exploit or radicalise. If someone makes you feel uncomfortable, or if something feels too good to be true, block them.

The internet and social media are not going anywhere – but we don’t yet know how they may evolve. As parents we must do our best to stay abreast of changes and emerging threats, and we must also arm young people with critical thinking skills and guidance to ensure they are alert to online dangers, so that they can use their devices safely, positively and constructively.

What is the Manosphere?

The manosphere is a collection of websites and forums where toxic masculinity and misogynistic ideas are shared and promoted by users. Previously on the fringes of the internet, popular apps like TikTok and YouTube are now awash with manosphere content despite the banning of infamous names like Andrew Tate from these platforms.

Research from the US charity Centre for Countering Hate found that within four minutes of creating an account on TikTok a 14-year-old boy will be pushed misogynistic content from Andrew Tate on his personalised feed. Tate and other manosphere influencers like him push a toxic alpha male ideology. Their videos are often presented as motivational-style pep talks that are informal and 'matey' yet underneath the friendly ‘big brother offering advice’ is a worldview that is misogynistic, sometimes violent and which measures success in material wealth. Tate himself regularly uses derogatory and dehumanising language to describe women and is currently under investigation in the UK and Romania on charges of rape and human trafficking, charges he denies. In his posts he is regularly seen posing in fast cars and private jets and has been photographed holding guns.

Related to this are ‘Pick-up-artists’ (PUAs) or influencers who teach men how to meet women and manipulate them into sex. ‘Hustle bros’ have combined traditional PUA content with get-rich-quick schemes – a similar tactic to Tate whose 'Hustler's University' multi-level-marketing scheme made him millions, while promising but failing to deliver riches to its tens of thousands of members.

Underpinning much of this manosphere content is a worldview in which feminism and female empowerment are to blame for complex societal changes relating to the economy and employment, power and gender roles; changes which are simplistically portrayed by manosphere influencers as the emasculation of men by women and girls.

One of the gateways to manosphere content can be ostensibly innocuous-looking self-improvement and fitness videos, but which in fact promote narrow, outdated and toxic ideas of masculinity and femininity that are damaging to self-esteem and exploit boys'/mens' insecurities and vulnerabilities about sex, their role in the world and what it means to be male.

Other manosphere influencers to be aware of are Hamza Ahmed, Fresh and Fit and Sneako.

Helpful Resources

Kiddle (https://www.kiddle.co) is a child-friendly, visual search engine that restricts age inappropriate searches and results.

Pikluk and KidRex are child-safe browsers that allow children to search the web but filter out any inappropriate, graphic or violent content.

Custodio is a parental monitoring app that can block certain websites and apps on your child’s device. It also lets you monitor online activity and set screen time limits.

Internet Matters (www.internetmatters.org) has a wealth of information for parents on how to set up devices safely and navigate online issues, as well as advice on internet usage at different ages.

The Internet Watch Foundation (www.iwf.org.uk) works with global partners to find and remove child sexual abuse imagery. They have partnered with childline.co.uk to create a 'Report and Remove' tool where victims of such abuse can report the images and have them removed.

Report Harmful Content (www.reportharmfulcontent.com) assists users in reporting various types of harmful content online and provides links to the correct reporting facilities.

Safer Internet Centre (www.saferinternet.org.uk) provides resources for primary and secondary students, and information for parents to help young people stay safe online.

Brick Phones Around the world sales of brick phones such as the classic noughties handset the Nokia 3210 are surging. The brick phone allows children to call or text parents, carers and friends but provides limited access to the internet and none of the addictive apps that are so concerning to parents.