Close X
Sunday, November 24, 2024
ADVT 
Tech

Do Parents Share Excessively About Kids On Social Media?

Darpan News Desk IANS, 17 Mar, 2015 02:37 PM
    You love to share the pics and videos of your kid's antics on social media. But are you ending up sharing too much? A lot of parents say yes.
     
    University of Michigan National Poll on Children's Health found that more than half of the mothers and one-third of fathers are discussing child health and parenting on social media.
     
    Nearly three quarters of parents said social media makes them feel less alone.
     
    But how far is too far when it comes to crossing the boundaries between public and private life?
     
    "By the time children are old enough to use social media themselves, many already have a digital identity created for them by their parents," said Sarah J. Clark from the University of Michigan.
     
    "On one hand, social media offers today's parents an outlet they find incredibly useful, on the other hand, some are concerned that over sharing may pose safety and privacy risks for their children," Clark added.
     
    When sharing parenting advice on social media, common topics included getting kids to sleep (28 percent), nutrition and eating tips (26 percent), discipline (19 percent), daycare/preschool (17 percent) and behaviour problems (13 percent), according to the poll that surveyed a national sample of parents of children aged zero to four.
     
    However, parents also recognised potential pitfalls of sharing information about their children, with nearly two-thirds concerned someone would learn private information about their child or share photos of their child.
     
    More than half also worried that when older, their child may be embarrassed by what was shared.
     
    "There's potential for the line between sharing and over sharing to get blurred. Parents may share information that their child finds embarrassing or too personal when they are older but once it's out there, it's hard to undo," Clark said.
     
    "The child won't have much control over where it ends up or who sees it," Clark added.
     
    Three-quarters of parents polled also pointed to "oversharenting" by another parent, including parents who shared embarrassing stories, gave information that could identify a child's location, or posted photos perceived as inappropriate.
     
    Stories of sharenting gone wrong have been rampant, with one of the most extreme examples included a phenomenon called "digital kidnapping" reported earlier this year.
     
    Parents were shocked to learn that strangers were "stealing" their kids online photos and resharing them as if the children were their own.
     
    In other cases, children's photos have become the target of cruel jokes and cyber bullying.
     
    Among the most notorious cases in recent years was that of a Facebook group that made fun of "ugly" babies.

    MORE Tech ARTICLES

    Bell's CraveTV launches next week for $4 a month

    Bell's CraveTV launches next week for $4 a month
    Bell's streaming competitor to Netflix and Shomi will launch to "TV lovers" next week at about half the price.

    Bell's CraveTV launches next week for $4 a month

    IBM helps you donate computer power to fight Ebola

    IBM helps you donate computer power to fight Ebola
    IBM has engineered a way for everyone to join the fight against Ebola — by donating processing time on their personal computers, phones or tablets to researchers.

    IBM helps you donate computer power to fight Ebola

    Twitter gets Instagram style photo filters

    Twitter gets Instagram style photo filters
    The Twitter app for iOS and Android devives has replaced its photo filter grid with an easier to use Instagram-style row of adjustable filters....

    Twitter gets Instagram style photo filters

    This computer understands science better than humans

    This computer understands science better than humans
    A computer developed by the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UWM) has proved that it is better than scientists at extracting data from scientific publications...

    This computer understands science better than humans

    MIT engineers overcome doubters to design a cheetah robot that can run, jump on battery power

    MIT engineers overcome doubters to design a cheetah robot that can run, jump on battery power
    It's a robot unlike any other: inspired by the world's fastest land animal, controlled by video game technology and packing nifty sensors

    MIT engineers overcome doubters to design a cheetah robot that can run, jump on battery power

    App That Stops You From 'Drunk' Calling Your Girlfriend

    App That Stops You From 'Drunk' Calling Your Girlfriend
    Described as a "condom for your phone", Drunk Mode stops you from doing foolish things with your phone when you have had a few drinks, IBTimes reported.

    App That Stops You From 'Drunk' Calling Your Girlfriend