Youth Mental Health Day 2024
Being able to instantly connect with peers, expressing creativity, and accessing entertainment and information in an instant, are just a few of the many positives the online world presents.
There are some amazing mental health apps out there 👀.
Yet for every positive there is a negative, and the online world poses many hidden and overt harms that young people didn’t have to face ten years ago. In a stem4 survey of 1,025 young people, nine in ten (93%) said they had been scared by content online.
They were worried about disinformation, misinformation and fake news (59%) followed by online scams and fraud (58%), online bullying (52%) and sharing of sexual images (39%).
What’s more 58% said they would avoid using search engines or apps if they knew they had the potential to cause them harm.
Download How to #ControlYourScroll: A Guide for Young People
Basic Digital Skills
Being online is a bit like learning to drive. There are some basic skills that help to get the best of your online experience, together with learning how to be safe to yourself and others and when to have a break.
Some basic skills include:
- Understanding how to use devices effectively.
- Knowing how to protect information and to think critically about the information you access.
- To take time to reflect on how your interactions might be affecting you emotionally.
- To create content that’s accurate and kind.
- To keep up on new learning about emerging technologies and challenges.
- To behave online in the same way you would behave offline, specifically with regards to being respectful and keeping within the law.
Tips for how to #ControlYourSearch
Tip 1: Use trusted websites and safe search settings.
Tip 2: Sensational headlines can act as ‘clickbait’- which means they grab your attention but are more likely to have inaccurate information.
Tip 3: Be careful with personal information.
Tip 4: Question and fact check the content you access online.
Contact stem4
Website: www.stem4.org.uk
Email: enquiries@stem4.org.uk
Advice: www.stem4.org.uk/further-advice
