Monday, December 22, 2025
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

    Watch live telecast from moon in 2015

    Watch live telecast from moon in 2015
    You may soon be able to watch live telecast from the moon, and closely see how it looks like from the surface that has fascinated young and old alike since ages.

    Watch live telecast from moon in 2015

    Happy birthday! Gmail turns 10

    Happy birthday! Gmail turns 10
    Your favourite webmail service Gmail has turned 10. Launched April 1, 2004, Google’s simple, user-friendly inbox today is an undisputed leader in email and related services.

    Happy birthday! Gmail turns 10

    Are you happily disgusted or sadly angry? Find out

    Are you happily disgusted or sadly angry? Find out
    What if your computer can distinguish even expressions for complex or seemingly contradictory emotions such as 'happily disgusted' or 'sadly angry'?

    Are you happily disgusted or sadly angry? Find out

    Why scholars don't trust social media?

    Why scholars don't trust social media?
    At a time when people from all walks of life are using various social media platforms to send their message across, the trend is just the opposite in case of university scholars.

    Why scholars don't trust social media?

    Indian scientist contests Big Bang `evidences'

    Indian scientist contests Big Bang `evidences'
    Indian astrophysicist Abhas Mitra, at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) in Mumbai, who had once challenged the Black Hole theory of Britain's famed Stephen Hawking is in the limelight again.

    Indian scientist contests Big Bang `evidences'

    Onward robotic soldiers: IIT students pioneer cutting-edge research

    Onward robotic soldiers: IIT students pioneer cutting-edge research
    Picture this: Robots braving bullets while ferrying weapons and ammunition to soldiers on the battle front. Or, a robotic arm resembling the human variety that can work in hazardous areas like blast furnaces. Students at IIT-Roorkee are swotting to turn these ideas into reality.

    Onward robotic soldiers: IIT students pioneer cutting-edge research