The Impact of Social Media on Children, Adolescents, and Families

the most common activity of today's children and adolescents.

BENEFITS OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS USING SOCIAL MEDIA

Socialization and Communication

1. opportunities for community engagement

2. enhancement of individual and collective creativity

3. growth of ideas from the creation of blogs, podcasts, videos, and gaming sites

4. expansion of one's online connections

5. fostering of one's individual identity and unique social skills

Enhanced Learning Opportunities

Accessing Health Information

PRIVACY CONCERNS AND THE DIGITAL FOOTPRINT

ON TOO YOUNG: MIXED MESSAGES FROM PARENTS AND THE LAW

SOCIAL MEDIA USE BY TWEENS AND TEENS

connecting with friends, classmates, and people with shared interests

using for social media, texting, and instant messaging

introducing problems such as cyberbullying,5 privacy issues, and “sexting

Internet addiction and concurrent sleep deprivation

RISKS OF YOUTH USING SOCIAL MEDIA

Cyberbullying and Online Harassment

Sexting

Facebook Depression

INFLUENCE OF ADVERTISEMENTS ON BUYING

THE ROLE OF PEDIATRICIANS

1. Advise parents to talk to their children about their online use and the specific issues that today's online kids face

2. Advise parents to work on their own participation gap in their homes

3. Discuss with families the need for a family online-use plan that involves regular family meetings

4. Discuss with parents the importance of supervising online activities via active participation and communication