Week 6: Future Generations

            Well, another week has gone by in the Psychology of Social Media class. I really do like this class, but I ended up missing quite a bit this week. Something we did talk about was how to help our children and other future generations from getting sucked into all of the negative things of the Internet, such as false information, crude comments and trolling, manipulation, and pornography. Obviously all of these things can and will happen, but as parents and adults that will help shape the lives of the young, we must instill in these children an awareness of these evils and help them learn to say no to them when they are presented. The worst thing to do is to wait until the child is exposed. The best thing to do is address the issue before as a way to prepare the child. And don’t beat around the bush about it. Let the child know that these things are wrong, but also explain why these things are wrong and harmful. The “why” is the most important part. If the child fully understands the reason for avoiding things such as pornography, their behavior will change in such a way that they will have a personal set of standards that are much higher and much harder to bring down. Then, when the time comes, they can stand on their own and make the right decisions. This is so important to their well being and future. We must be open and direct and loving about this with all of our children in our lives so that they are better prepared than most of us were.