“Potential Risk of Harm from Content" & "Excessive and Problematic Use" (and how social media push these risks onto kids). Delving into the Surgeon-General's report on social media and teens (Pt. 2)
How social media companies and algorithms make possible problems all the worse.
Last week, I delved into the recent Surgeon General’s advisory on social media. Basically, he’s not a fan. In his words, “there are ample indicators that social media can also have a profound risk of harm to the mental health and well-being of children and adolescents.” (4)
You can read my summary here, and for those who are interested, you can read the whole advisory here. You can also read the summary here. (Please note, in my summary last week, I also included some of the gaps in research and the unknowns that the Surgeon General acknowledges.)
Because the advisory is so important and quite long, (25 pages including the end notes), I wanted to share some key findings in small installments. Today, I will cover some of the specific risks, because there are a few specific things parents should be aware of and vigilant about. I will cover some of the potential benefits in a subsequent post. Please note: I am trying to hit the key points and share this information with busy parents. This is not an exhaustive analysis and I am sharing what jumps out to me.
Also, because this takes a lot of time and effort, I am putting this behind the paywall. If you want to read it but can’t support a yearly subscription, you can always get a month’s subscription for $5.00 and cancel when you have read all the material. That way you get last week’s post and the coming part 3.
According to the Surgeon General, there are two specific ways that social media can cause harm. The first is exposure to harmful content. The second is a bit more subtle, but has to do with excessive and problematic use on the part of the consumer.
I don’t think anyone will be surprised by what the harmful content is, but some of the stats may surprise even very careful parents. This is problematic content is available by searching, of course, but its also pushed on unsuspecting kids through “direct pushes, unwanted content exchanges, and algorithmic designs.” (9)
So, it’s important to consider that everything I now share with you is available to your child via their own searching and curiosity and also it is being served to them via algorithms and unsolicited encounters. Also, remember, they hear lots of things from friends that you have no idea they are hearing. So you are almost certainly not even aware that they know enough to be curious about and searching for potentially problematic and dangerous subjects.
Warning—this is pretty grim stuff: