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How safe do teenagers behave on Facebook? An observational study
Ellen Vanderhoven1, Tammy Schellens1, Martin Valcke1
1Department of Educational Studies, Ghent University, Gent, Belgium.
Plos One
|August 28, 2014
Summary
Teenagers share significant personal and risky information on Facebook, with older teens and girls posting more. Privacy settings are inconsistently applied, leaving data vulnerable.
Area of Science:
- Social Sciences
- Psychology
- Media Studies
Background:
- Teenagers extensively use social network sites (SNS), raising privacy and security concerns.
- Previous research relied on surveys, potentially affected by social desirability bias.
- Observational studies on adolescent SNS behavior, particularly on private profiles, are limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate information sharing and privacy setting usage among teenagers on Facebook.
- To assess the extent of risky information posted on adolescent Facebook profiles.
- To identify demographic factors influencing online behavior and privacy management.
Main Methods:
- An observational study of 1050 public and non-public Facebook profiles of teenagers aged 13-18.
- Analysis of posted content (pictures, interests, personal information) and privacy setting configurations.
- Evaluation of the risk level associated with shared information.
Main Results:
- Teenagers primarily share pictures, interests, and basic personal details.
- While some privacy settings restrict access, much information is visible to friends-of-friends.
- Older teenagers and girls tend to post more information, including risky content, with no significant differences in privacy setting application across demographics or education types.
Conclusions:
- Adolescent Facebook use involves substantial information sharing, with varying degrees of privacy protection.
- Despite generally low risk scores, a significant amount of risky information is posted.
- Findings highlight the need for enhanced digital literacy and privacy awareness among adolescents.
