Minors between 8 and 16 spend online from one to three hours a day, one in five over four hours, using various tools, social networks, messaging and streaming platforms.
This photograph is outlined by the study 'Media and digital literacy for the protection of minors: behaviours, opportunities and fears of surfers under 16', promoted by the Ministry of Business and Made in Italy with the High School in Media, Communication and Entertainment of the Catholic University.
There are various reasons that push young people to spend so much time online and the study has identified various profiles.
The restless (31%) online seek strong and emotionally engaging stimuli.
They frequently encounter negative experiences, such as exposure to content that is not suitable for their age and contact with strangers.
Then there are explorers (25% of the sample), who go online driven by the desire to have fun and learn.
Performers (24% of the sample) for whom the web is a space where they can experience emotions, have fun and put themselves on stage.
They are aware of the risks of the network and therefore adopt a series of self-protection measures.
Finally, the retreatants (20% of the sample) describe themselves as angry, scared and dissatisfied with themselves.
The research highlights that 94% of children between the ages of 8 and 16 use a smartphone.
Seven out of ten children (half between 8 and 10 years old) regularly use social media and streaming platforms.
The study then confirmed the evidence on the risks of the network for minors.
Four out of 10 interviewees describe negative experiences.
"Digital environments are a fundamental resource for younger generations. - stated Mariagrazia Fanchi, Director of the High School in Media, Communication and Entertainment -. They are complex worlds, in relation to which digital natives find themselves having to develop skills of use, which are learned through discussion with parents, from the peer group, at school, and which also require the development of policies capable of promoting enriching content and protecting against risks".
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