In November 2024, the Australian government passed a world-first law, banning children under the age of 16 from using social-media platforms — it will be enacted by the end of the year. As an expert in cyberbullying, I’m concerned.
The effects of social media on young people are not black and white. Yes, some evidence points to a correlation between children’s social-media use and their current high levels of mental-health difficulties. But certain groups of children benefit from using such platforms. For instance, young people who have autism, those who are exploring their sexual and gender identity and others might find it easier to socialize online than in person, because online, they can find a tribe of people they identify with, who might not live in the same physical neighbourhood.
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Bans are blunt instruments, often driving a practice underground, rather than curbing it — as happened in the 1920s, for instance, when the United States prohibited the consumption of alcohol. If social-media use is banned, many children will feel unable to talk to their parents or carers about their online lives. And this law would take away parents’ right to decide what’s best for their own children.
In my view, governments should instead invest in educating parents and carers on how to engage with children about their social-media use.
This education is not happening, in part because there is little firm evidence to go on. Many studies have analysed how social-media use affects teenagers, including investigating declines in youth mental health and adverse effects on sleep quality. But research into how parents and carers can support children — in dealing with online bullying, in ensuring their mental well-being, and in not being unduly influenced by others — is lacking.
It’s unclear, for instance, what the best practices are for parents to educate their children and regulate their screen time. Is it better to delay giving their child a smartphone until they are a teenager, to allow social media but to limit access or to use a combination of these approaches? How involved should parents be in their children’s online lives, to ensure that they provide support yet also foster independence? It’s also unclear how a parent’s own social-media use influences that of their children, and vice versa.
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Studies are needed to investigate various approaches — such as limiting or banning social-media use — and comparing the outcomes with supportive methods in which parents and children spend time online together and discuss what they encounter. Such work should track children from infancy to adulthood. Governments must fund such research and be prepared to act on the findings, which are unlikely to suggest easy, one-size-fits-all solutions.
