Have you ever heard the term “ghosting”? According to the Urban Dictionary ghosting is:
"The act of suddenly ceasing all communication with someone the subject is dating, but no longer wishes to date. ... Ghosting is not specific to a certain gender and is closely related to the subject's maturity and communication skills. .."
This happens with both teens and adults, I first heard of this practice when an adult friend told me about another friend who had simply stopped responding to emails, texts and phone calls. According to a Huffington post poll about 10 percent of Americans have "ghosted" someone to break up with them. Using avoidance as a coping skill is not new, but online communication has made that an easier way to deal with uncomfortable situations.
For Tech Talk Tuesday this week let's talk about "ghosting". :
January 30, 2017
As well as our weekly blog, we publish videos like this one every week on the Screenagers YouTube channel
Have you ever heard the term “ghosting”? According to the Urban Dictionary ghosting is:
"The act of suddenly ceasing all communication with someone the subject is dating, but no longer wishes to date. ... Ghosting is not specific to a certain gender and is closely related to the subject's maturity and communication skills. .."
This happens with both teens and adults, I first heard of this practice when an adult friend told me about another friend who had simply stopped responding to emails, texts and phone calls. According to a Huffington post poll about 10 percent of Americans have "ghosted" someone to break up with them. Using avoidance as a coping skill is not new, but online communication has made that an easier way to deal with uncomfortable situations.
For Tech Talk Tuesday this week let's talk about "ghosting". :
January 30, 2017
As well as our weekly blog, we publish videos like this one every week on the Screenagers YouTube channel
If ever there was a time to talk about the topic of TikTok with our kids and students, now is it. Yes, it happened. Saturday, the TikTok app went dark in the US, a day after the ban approved by Congress was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court. Then, by Sunday, it returned. In today's Tech Talk Tuesday, I am providing questions you can use to discuss this with kids and teens.
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Many young people are overwhelmed by constant social media use, which can displace important activities like sleep, schoolwork, and friendships. Over 200 school districts are suing platforms like Meta for harms related to social media addiction. The blog covers what problematic social media use is from a clinical perspective and how our kids can talk with a friend (or family member) if they are worried their friend might have some level of problematic use.
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A week ago, Instagram announced changes to its rules for “Teen Accounts.” All new teen users will be defaulted into these accounts, and current teen users will transition over the next two months. Instagram’s head of Products, discussed these changes, and one comment surprised me. She mentioned that teens aged 13 to 16 will need parental permission to have a public account, hoping this would encourage dialogue between teens and parents about social media use. However, I feel this still puts too much responsibility on parents when we need broader societal solutions. I discuss this and the rest of the changes in today's blog.
READ MORE >for more like this, DR. DELANEY RUSTON'S NEW BOOK, PARENTING IN THE SCREEN AGE, IS THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE FOR TODAY’S PARENTS. WITH INSIGHTS ON SCREEN TIME FROM RESEARCHERS, INPUT FROM KIDS & TEENS, THIS BOOK IS PACKED WITH SOLUTIONS FOR HOW TO START AND SUSTAIN PRODUCTIVE FAMILY TALKS ABOUT TECHNOLOGY AND IT’S IMPACT ON OUR MENTAL WELLBEING.
