Teens Trust Their Parents When It Comes to Health Information
Teens Trust Their Parents when It Comes to Health Information – Today’s Internet-savvy teens are used to looking up information on just about anything on the Internet. But a new study shows that when it comes to health information, they trust their parents more than online sources.
Researchers at Northwestern University studied how teenagers use technology to learn about health. They surveyed over a 1,000 teens aged 13 to 18. Despite the perception that teens turn to online sources and social media for information, researchers found that teens don’t think the health content available online is relevant for them, and many also have trouble finding what they’re looking for.
According to Ellen Wartella, director of Northwestern’s Center on Media and Human Development, which released the report, teens prize their privacy and don’t want others to know what information they’re searching for online.
Teens tend to look for health information either for school projects or for advice on diet and fitness. A third of the teens said they looked up information when they are sick or injured. One in three teens said that they changed their behavior based on what they read online. But most teenagers also said that they usually look at the first few results that show up, and do not delve too deep. When asked directly where they got most of their health information, 55% said they got it from their parents. Health classes in schools and medical professionals also ranked higher than online information.
Forty-one percent of those surveyed said they looked for information on unhealthy issues, such as drinking games, how to be anorexic or bulimic, and anxiety, ADHD, sexually transmitted diseases, smoking and puberty. Teens said that they felt frustrated because they often did not find information that was helpful or relevant to them. Researchers conclude that online health resources should do a better job at presenting and tagging information, so it’s more useful to teens and also easily discover-able.
Category: News
