TheirSpace

During the late 18^th and early 19^th centuries, parents worried about their daughters reading too many books!  They thought that reading so much was a kind of disease![i]   Later on, the concerns centered mostly on rock music, and hangouts like soda shops in the 1950s and discos in the 70s.  Today, our worries mostly center on computers and phones.  Websites like myspace, facebook, and twitter are the preferred hangouts of 21^st century teens.[ii]  Teens can also stay in constant contact by texting. 

Mostly, these things are not any worse than the other teen pastimes mentioned above.  Teens are always going to do things different from the things their parents do, if only for that very reason.  And hanging out is very important to teenagers, whether it’s in a soda shop or on Myspace.

But there are some differences.  Sometimes, the individuals that are communicating with teens online are not the kind of people that your child would choose to befriend in real life.  Teens can sometimes be fooled by online personas created by certain people who would harm them.  So, diligence is required, plus the all-important monitoring and communication between you and your teen.

A bigger concern online is “cyberbullying”.  This term includes many different behaviors, such as spreading rumors, faking an identity with intent to harm someone, teasing, forwarding sensitive information, etc.  This is usually done by other teens with whom your child is familiar, commonly called “frenemies” – those who act like my friends, but are really my enemies!  Most parents are more concerned about strangers online, but studies show that more teens are the victims of cyberbullying by “frenemies” than of sexual predators who are strangers.[iii]

Lastly, images on cell phones have become a major concern in schools.  One 8^th grade student made the comment recently that if all the phones in the classroom were collected and examined, the teacher would probably be “disgusted” at the images on the phones.  Technically, having a nude or semi-nude photo of an underage person is child pornography, as defined by law.  A few of these cases have been prosecuted.[iv]  Monitor your teen’s phone!

I W8 is a program of Rise Up!  •  PO Box 4426, Johnson City, TN 37602 
Phone: 423.610.1242  •   Email: info@RiseUpForKids.com