Exposure to unsettling content has proven detrimental for teens. How can parents police such habits? YouTube has come up with a solution.
As a part of its recent updates, YouTube has launched additional features to propagate teen safety. It leverages the help of third-party resources to establish safe viewing experiences online.
While the web is a widely helpful place, certain corners require policing. It’s the other side of the coin. Thus, in partnership with the American Psychological Association, YouTube has released a parents’ guide.
This guide helps parents understand how to encourage healthier viewing habits for their teens.
Because the Internet is vast and the teenage years are full of curiosity. Without certain perimeters in place, it’s easy to access content that can harm the kids psychologically and mentally.
So, YouTube’s guide is now accessible to help parents ensure their children can safely browse and consume online content. It’s primarily based on decades of research on how videos affect an adolescent’s well-being, mental health, and development.
The guide also highlights different segments on video content – from digital literacy to what could potentially be healthy viewing habits. And in line with this, the parent association is also set to release a video series illustrating how one can apply their theoretical approach.
Further, on a related note, YouTube is not merely focusing on the theory. After a thorough discussion with a panel of child development experts, the platform has also executed new parameters:
- Limited exposure to content that directly highlights social aggression and body image issues.
- A more prominent “Take A Break” and bedtime reminder set at 10 pm.
- Notifications are sent to parents’ emails depending on their teen’s viewing history.
These updates are crucial to regulate the content teens watch and create. While there is a plethora of content available on YouTube, it’s easy to let one’s curiosity win and deviate from what’s inappropriate.
A lot of times, there is a lack of conversation between parents and children concerning their screen times and the type of content they consume daily.
YouTube, through the updates, aims to kickstart a healthy conversation, safeguarding teens from unhealthy viewing experiences.