Child's Play, Kid Gloves and Keeping Mum: UK Children's Internet Use

The results of a two-year study into children in the UK's use of the Internet have been published by UK Children Go Online (UKCGO). The study is unique in that it reveals the thoughts and feelings of young people themselves about the digital age in which they are living. This At Your Leisure looks into the findings of the study, how it was carried out and what lessons we can learn about how young people can be encouraged to use the Internet effectively and safely.

Research methods

It may be helpful at this stage to consider the process used by researchers to carry out their work. The research team from the London School of Economics which formed UKCGO in association with industry representatives and regulators, worked over a two-year period, dividing their study into three distinct phases:

UKCGO also was keen to have their study guided by a group of key stakeholders in children's issues. An advisory panel was created for this purpose which included representatives from the following organisations: AOL UK, National Children's Homes, Citizens Online, Childnet International, the Independent Television Commission and OFCOM (regulator for the UK's communication industries).

Additionally, the team acknowledged that researching into children and their private lives requires an ethical approach. They devised an ethics policy, which is available online.

What the study investigated

Access to the Internet, inequalities and the digital divide

75% of 9-19 year olds can access the Internet from a computer at home, 92% have accessed the Internet from school.

Internet use by UK children and young people is much higher than comparative use by adults. It is also higher than for children in most other European countries. But use of the Internet depends to a significant extent on the wealth of the children's household. 88% of middle class children access the Internet from home, but this figure falls to 61% for young people from working class backgrounds.

Many young people access the Internet from computers in private rooms.

19% of 9-19 year olds have Internet access in their bedrooms. Fewer than half of online home computers are located in a family room. 79% of young people with home access say they use the Internet alone.

16% of 9-19 year olds make low levels or even no use at all of the Internet.

Clearly the Internet is not being used to its full potential. It matters if your parents or guardians use the Internet, as children from these households tend to be Internet users themselves. Young people tend to visit only a very narrow range of Web sites and evidence suggests that they do not attempt to interact with these sites.

Undesirable forms of content and contact

More than half of 9-19 year olds have seen pornography online.

Research indicates most young people view porn unintentionally, as a result of having seen a pornographic pop-up, or having been sent pornographic email messages. Nearly half of 18-19 year olds who have seen porn at an earlier age on the Internet, think they were too young to do so. Over half of all young people who encounter porn on the Internet claim not to have been bothered by it, although 14% have not liked it. Parents seem to underestimate their children's exposure to negative experiences online or through text messaging.

46% of children give out personal information online.

In contrast to what their parents think, half of all young people divulge personal information to people they have only met online. 86% of parents reported that they do not allow their children to give out this information, but less than half of children admit to having been set such a rule. The study counts personal information as including the following: details of their hobbies, email address, full name, age, name of their school, phone number or sending a photograph.

Education, informal learning and literacy

30% of 9-19 year olds have not received lessons on using the Internet.

As a result, young people lack the skills needed to evaluate online content. 38% of them trust most of the information they find on the Internet. Only a third of young people have been taught how to judge the reliability of information on the Internet.

Only 16% of weekly and daily user parents think that they are advanced users, compared to 32% of children.

This results in a skills gap opening up between parents and children. This may cause problems for parents in adequately monitoring their children's use of the Internet. One in five parents surveyed by UKCGO admitted that they don't know how to help their children use the Internet. Unable to offer help, many parents create strict systems to regulate their children's use of the Internet. They may ban the use of the Internet or restrict the amount of time spent online.

Communication, identity and participation

The mobile phone is the preferred method of communication for young people.

Unsurprisingly perhaps, young people use their mobiles to pass the time, make arrangements, gossip or flirt; they prefer using phone and text messaging to sending emails and instant messaging. The need is to maintain constant contact with their friends, rather than making new friendships on the Internet with people they haven't met.

40% of 9-19 year olds say that they have pretended about themselves online.

The Internet offers the possibility to invent personas. This is done in many cases by setting up multiple email aliases. Parents are so concerned about their children's use of chat rooms to interact with and perhaps meet strangers, that many resort to strict rules; two-thirds of parents surveyed ban their children from using chat rooms.

Participation depends on age, gender and social class.

44% of 9-19 year old weekly users have completed an online quiz, 25% have sent a text message or email to a Web site, and 17% have sent pictures or stories to a Web site. More than half of 12-19 year old weekly users have visited sites concerned with political or civic issues. These sites tend to be visited more frequently by girls, older teens and those from middle class backgrounds.

What young people and parents want

The study produces a 'parental wish-list' detailing the developments that most parents would want to see. These include:

Qualitative interviews with children uncovered a number of ways that could improve young people's Internet use. These included:

Image: Teenagers' use of the Internet could be improved with better content, greater interactivity, improved protection and more attention to their privacy needs. Copyright: Norbert Machinek, stock.xchng

Conclusion

The Internet has passed beyond its introductory stage and can no longer be seen as a new 'fad'. One of the key messages of this study is that parents who are Internet illiterate are failing their children. But is this true? The study looked at the major disadvantages of Internet illiteracy and found that it can lead to:

Whether the study's fears are realised or not, this research project provides for the first time, insights into the thoughts of young people as they come face-to-face with the digital society. This is the largest academic study of children's use of technology and it provides a useful starting point in understanding the Internet-related hopes and fears of young people and parents.

Activity

Create a shortlist of dos and don'ts for safe Internet use for 9-14 year olds. The list of further information sources might be useful.
Design a leaflet for parents outlining advice on ensuring that their children's Internet experience is as safe as possible. Look into how parents can use filtering software, anti-virus systems and firewalls to protect both their children and home computers.
The study suggests that there is a gap between what children are doing online and what their parents think they are doing. Parents view the benefits of Internet access in the home as helping their children with their schoolwork, whereas children see the Internet in terms of the benefits it gives them in communication and entertainment. What can be done to close this gap?
Clearly, the Internet is not all good news. As a tool to aid learning, communication and entertainment it offers benefits for education, social interaction and citizenship. But there are significant problems with unregulated Internet access. Use one page of A4 to summarise the costs and benefits of universal Internet access in people's homes.
The study identified people's inability to evaluate content on the Internet as a major problem. How well do you think your own skills and knowledge help you to judge the reliability of Web content? Go to the Virtual Training Suite on Leisure, Sport and Recreation(http://www.vts.intute.ac.uk/tutorial/sport?sid=4709501&op=render&manifestid=46&page=indexhtmll) and work through the section entitled 'Judge' to find out more.
Think about the methods used by the researchers to carry out their study. What was good about the following aspects of their work:
- The use of an advisory panel
- Creating an ethics policy
- Using qualitative research techniques
- Using private sections of the survey

At your Leisure - 02 May 2005