Social media use

This study aimed to examine the impact of parenting mediation strategies on family relationships and social media use among Saudi adolescents. To achieve the aim, a quantitative research design was used, involving questionnaires with data collected from 393 Saudi students aged 13-18 years. Pearson correlation and hierarchical multiple regression analyses were performed. The key findings of this study showed that Snapchat and Instagram were the most popular social media sites among Saudi adolescents, and parenting mediation strategies were affected by family relationships. Just over a third of participants (35.62%) reported that they spent 3-5 hours per day on social media with another 30.79% spending more than 6 hours per day on social media. Family relationships were found to strongly predict the social integration and social media addiction. The data showed a significant negative correlation between excessive use of social media and two components of family relationships (cohesion and expressiveness). Moreover, the results suggest that lower levels of family expressiveness and higher levels of family conflict were associated with social media addiction. The parenting mediation strategies were shown to predict the cohesiveness and expressiveness of family relationships. Finally, technical and monitoring parenting mediation strategies were found significant associated with the social media use and the family relationships. These results contribute to formulating guidelines for parents and policymakers in developing countries such as Saudi Arabia to protect their children from the social media risks.

This study examined how young Nigerian internet users view social media use and cyberethics. This study included all secondary school-aged female Nigerians from the six geopolitical zones. Thirty-six females aged 13–15, the generation's median age, were chosen from each zone and state. The tool for data collection was an open-ended survey. The results revealed that young women used multiple social media platforms. The characteristics of the various social media platforms which showed minimal text, short videos, and photo-editing filters showed that their peers heavily influenced their use of social media. This study also found that Generation Z females believed that large number of online followers implied a high sense of self-esteem and that any activities that increased followership was acceptable. They also underestimated online risks. Female Gen Z posted sexually suggestive videos online due to peer pressure and the need for peer acceptance, showing a lack of awareness of the consequences of such conduct. The study recommended that schools and all organisations put in place policies to ensure positive use of the Internet. Similarly, the study also recommended modifications of school curricula to include cyberethical awareness. Parenting techniques should also adequately teach societal awareness and the risks of exposing children to early exposure to the Internet.