More youths under 18 years old are looking at pornography on the Internet than five years ago and it’s not by choice.
A study released yesterday by the University of New Hampshire shows an increase in the number of underage people who report seeing unwanted pornography online, despite a greater awareness of the dangers lurking on the Web. Conversely, the study also showed that youths were less likely to be solicited for sex while surfing the Web.
Don’t think kids are blameless in all these online misdeeds either. The study also showed a rise in online bullying, which researchers attribute to cyber savvy kids moving their teasing from the play ground to the instant messenger conversation.
Although the study showed the numbers in each of the categories moving, the changes were slight, and reflected youngsters’ growing online attentiveness, researchers said during a conference call with reporters yesterday.
“It seems the harsh side of school life is migrating to or possibly being exacerbated by the Internet,” said one of the study’s co-authors Janis Wolak.
UNH researchers interviewed a nationwide group of 500 youths aged 10- to 17-years-old about their internet habits last year for the study, which was a follow up to a similar one in 2000.
One third of respondents reported seeing unwanted pornography online last year, compared to only 25 percent in 2000, while 9 percent reported experiencing or doling out harassment online last year, compared to only 6 percent in 2000.
Researchers attribute the jump in unwanted porn viewing to aggressive marketers and an increase in broadband internet usage, allowing for faster and easier transmittal of images.
But researchers also conceded that only the younger respondents of the study reported being harmed by the x-rated images, indicating a desensitization as youths get older.
Last year, only 1 in 7 respondents said they had been solicited for sex online, compared to 1 in 5 in 2000, which researchers attributed to youths’ being more cautious online and avoiding dangerous situations such as chat rooms.
Disturbingly, researchers noticed a slight increase in the number of respondents who said they were asked to make contact with an online buddy in real life, which researchers attribute to the determination of small band of online predators.
The study was sponsored by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.
The reports co-author, UNH Sociology Professor David Finkelhor, called for increased education on the dangers of the internet, calling it an online neighborhood, and a stronger law enforcement presence. He also noted the study showed a mere 10 percent of inappropriate behavior online was reported to anyone, whether law enforcement, parents or teachers.
“It’s a neighborhood in need of both a Mr. Rogers and a Mr. Dillon,” he said, referring to the child show host and the Marshall from Gunsmoke.
