• Posted November 20, 2024

Psychologists' Group Issues First Guidance to Parents on Teen Online Video Use

Parents can't monitor everything their kids watch online, but a set of new guidelines may help young people manage their own viewing habits.

"Research consistently shows that video content, and the platforms that host it, have the potential to help or harm teens," said Arthur Evans Jr., CEO of the American Psychological Association (APA). 

"It is the shared responsibility of video platforms, content creators, parents, caregivers, educators, policymakers and the technology industry to create an environment where youth can learn and express themselves safely online," he added in an APA news release.

The association announced new recommendations to help parents, policymakers and tech companies give teens the power to manage their own viewing habits.

They include steps that can be taken right away, as well as longer-range recommendations for Big Tech and policymakers.

For educators: Teach teens to be choosy. Videos can help with homework, teach new skills or hobbies or provide insights into different experiences and cultures, APA points out, calling on schools to teach video literacy. The aim: "To expand [teens'] knowledge and abilities while resisting manipulative platform features designed to prolong their engagement and profit from their attention."

For creators: Modify features that can affect teens' well-being. Platforms that recommend content to young people, switch between short videos and autoplay content to extend viewing time may lead to abnormal viewing habits and add to the damaging effects of harmful content, the APA points out.

For parents: Encourage teens to watch videos that will help them develop healthy relationship skills and content that promotes joy, emotional well-being, empathy and learning. 

Limit exposure to content promoting risky or violent behaviors, especially if it reinforces negative stereotypes and encourages users to post content, add comments or "like" content with harmful behaviors.

Teach teens to weigh the quality and accuracy of content, especially health information from laypeople. Monitor and consider limiting exposure to some influencers to head off one-sided relationships. 

Discuss the risks posed by AI-generated content, including the potential for biased, false or damaging information.

While the recommendations stem from studies of hundreds of thousands of teens worldwide, fewer studies have looked at teens with mental or physical disabilities or those from racial, ethnic, sexual or gender minority groups. And, the APA noted, teens mature at different rates, so the recommendations may not apply to all adolescents.

It suggested parents and caregivers set clear expectations and limits on video viewing and encourage their teens to discuss with them reactions to content.

"Given the amount of time youth spend online and the importance of autonomy to adolescent decision making and development, it is not possible for parents to monitor everything their children watch online," Evans conceded, adding that the aim is to spur regulators, policymakers and tech companies to take steps to shield teens from harmful content and platform features that encourage overuse.

More information

Nemours KidsHealth has a guide for parents on teen media use.

SOURCE: American Psychological Association, news release, Nov. 20, 2024