A new viral internet craze has created widespread fear and panic among parents, educators, and law enforcement. And like most of the others that came before it, the truth is more complicated (and less threatening) than the hype. I first became aware of the so-called “Momo Challenge” in July of 2018. In short, the idea…
Last week I received an email from Martin Cocker, a friend and colleague who runs the Netsafe organization in New Zealand. Netsafe is a one-stop shop for all things related to online safety. If you are a New Zealander who is being mistreated online, or work with someone who is, Netsafe can help. Last year…
Below is a brief description of some of the common presentations that Drs. Patchin and Hinduja provide. All of their presentations and workshops are highly-informative, relevant, fun, and interactive. There are ample opportunities to ask questions and receive advice on how to deal with specific problems you may have encountered. Note that they are extremely…
Adolescent girls tend to participate in more indirect, less visible forms of bullying, including psychological and emotional harassment (e.g., rumor spreading and other forms of relational aggression). Given the fact that the vast majority of cyberbullying behaviors involve these indirect forms of harassment, it makes sense that most research suggests that girls appear equally as…
This presentation is designed for educators and other youth-serving professionals who want to help adolescents make wise choices when participating on various social media. First, a foundation of the many positives and benefits of online social networking is laid while also exploring the developmental, emotional, and psychological reasons why teens have gravitated towards these environments.…
Sexting is “the sending or receiving of sexually-explicit or sexually-suggestive images or video via a cell phone.” Most commonly, the term has been used to describe incidents where teenagers take nude or semi-nude (e.g., topless) pictures of themselves and distribute those pictures to others using their cell phones. The images are often initially sent to…
We can help you use any of our books to educate staff in your district. Each includes numerous supplemental staff development and discussion questions at the end of each chapter. You might convene a book discussion group where staff meet weekly or bi-weekly to discuss each section. This is often done in conjunction with an…
Teens are the primary producers of web content, and continue to publish their ideas, experiences, stories, observations, and opinions on blogs, web journals, or personal profile pages (e.g., on Facebook). Additionally, they publish the pictures they take, the music and videos they produce, and many other forms of artistic, creative, intellectual, and social expression. While…
This study surveyed a random sample of 1,963 middle school students (mostly aged 11-14) from a large school district in the southern United States. Data were collected in in the spring of 2007 from 30 different schools. Click on thumbnail images to enlarge. Teen Technology Use. Online games are the most popular activity reported with…