As with almost anything in life, social networking can have its good sides but it can also have its bad sides. Sometimes the decision to allow your teen to engage in social networking will depend on whether or not you think the bad outweighs the good or vice versa.
We have to first acknowledge that social media is likely here to stay. It is not a fad that will die out anytime soon. Keeping up with the world is sometimes the only direction to go. In fact in my career as a writer, you usually need to have knowledge of and experience with social networking.
A recent annual “American Psychological Association” meeting addressed the pros and cons of children and social networking. They find that an overuse can lead to health problems, predominately with psychological disorders.
But isn’t that true with most things? Anything done in excess is never very good. So moderation is very important.
Some of the good in social networking is that it does allow for interactions that might not otherwise happen. Some interactions can be life-teaching, encouraging and inspiring. You can meet people from around the world. The flip side is that you could also meet someone who is not who they say are, or is actually dangerous.
Another good that I find is it gives me, as a parent, the opportunity to engage with my child on a whole new level. I know some teens won’t allow their parents to be their friends on Facebook but my children do. However I do use wisdom when deciding if I should post something and how I word it.
I have also learned things about my own children by visiting their Facebook pages. This can be very enlightening. It has allowed me opportunities to talk about things that I might not have otherwise thought necessary.
Social networking can also be good in the aspect of socializing at a whole new level. The bad side of this is that it can also become a way to silence relationships.
It can teach responsibility and help establish trust with your teens. Hopefully you will have long discussions about proper social networking behavior and dangers that may be out there.
The bad side is that you might not always know what your teen is doing through social networking. Your teen could be engaging in harmful or hurtful behaviors (such as bullying or sexual conversations).
There is good and there is bad…you just have to decide what is best for your family when it comes to allowing social networking. What has your family decided?
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Photo by Andrew Feinberg in Flickr