Escaping or connecting?
Date
2004
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Publisher
Journal of Adolescence
Abstract
Description
Used data from a US national sample of Internet users, ages 10-17 (N=1,501), to explore the characteristics of youth who had formed close relationships with people they met on the Internet (n=210). Some of the characteristics explored included being highly troubled, reporting high levels of parent-child conflict, low levels of communication with parents, high levels of delinquency, demographic characteristics, and aspects of Internet use. Results show that girls who had high levels of conflict with parents or were highly troubled were more likely than other girls to have close online relationships, as were boys who had low levels of communication with parents or were highly troubled, compared to other boys. Age, race and aspects of Internet use were also related. It is suggested that little is known about the nature or quality of the close online relationships, but youth with these sorts of problems may be more vulnerable to online exploitation and to other possible ill effects of online relationships. At the same time, these relationships may have helpful aspects.
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Keywords
Effects -- Social, Exploitation -- Internet, Internet