In the digital world we need more than children’s warning tags

The screened average and personalized digital devices infused the lives of American children and adolescents, so much that the former former American surgeon Vivek Mourthy has asked for social platforms to include warning tags. Is it a step in the right direction? It could eventually be up to us all to create a more collective and durable solution to keep young people safe in the digital world.

To work towards this future objective, we can first analyze the impact of previous legislation. The surgeon’s generals have attached warning tags to drums and alcohol products over the years and, to an extent, these efforts have helped. Do you remember when tobacco advertising was predominant in television and movies? Research has shown that cartoon figures such as Joe Camel and smoking in shielded environments have been associated with childhood smoking absorption.

This absorption was so so on this, in 1998, Master’s settlement agreement It required several large tobacco companies to refrain from paying tobacco products, and moving has led to a decrease in young tobacco exposure. Then in 2012, The general surgeon has launched a report Stating: “The proof is sufficient to conclude that there is a causal relationship between the representations of smoking in films and the initiation of smoking among young people.”

Having support from the general surgeon behind this concept was a key step in reducing the abuse of substances among young people, but it was just a piece of puzzle. With less the marketing of tobacco products in movies and television today, other forms of dangerous marketing now enter social media. Today’s young people can even “friend” alcohol companies on Instagram or Meta and can play “Advergames” (games that focus on the advertising of a product) containing content related to alcohol or cannabis.

In order to address this reality, we must give priority to the intervention and prevention that reduces all levels of social influence. Fundamentally, we must accept that children do not learn, do not grow up and develop in an isolation bubble. Psychologist Urie Bronfenbrenner proposed a socio-ecological model in 1979 This positioned the child in the center of several influence rings, with the closest rings around the child representing influences that were more proximal (colleagues, parents) and the outer rings representing influences that affected the child’s environment (Government, Mass -Media ).

With the growth of personalized devices, the media influences have now become much more influential, even affecting the formation of a child by self-representation on social media. Just as we are concerned about children who engage with adults or colleagues who could promote their involvement with the consumption of substances, The media was described as a “super peer” with a similar influence on the behavior of youth.

Digital activity is more widespread and more permanent than the activity in person (imagine your bullying that happens face to face to intimidation that happens online), and digital activity is easier for young people to hide from adults (Most children have more hidden social accounts or “Finstas”for example).

For this reason, so that we can collectively manage to protect young people against unsafe marketing and exposure, we all have to do our part. Decision factors should keep an eye on the safety of the child when considering regulatory actions for industries using digital marketing and product distribution. Schools must recognize the potential impact of the need for digital home. Parents need training to maintain the safety and confidentiality of young people. And young people need direct training in how they maintain their own safety and confidentiality.

Technological parent -A acronym that describes four evidence-based principles for digital housing management helps parents navigate in this new landscape. Parents can talk to their children about their media and technology use; Educate them about risks; Co-use technology and co-viewing the active average with them; and sets clear House rules Around the way media and technology can be used.

Warning labels can only do so much. It is our duty for adults and carers to be active and present in digital spaces and to teach our children how to maintain their health and online safety.

Joy Gabrielli, PhD, is an assistant professor at the Clinical and Health Psychology Department at the University of Florida.