CLAUSULAS Y CONDICIONES DE LA OFERTA

Studies show that children communicate in different ways on the internet with social networking becoming increasingly popular. They access social networks via games or specific social networking sites, such as Club Penguin, Moshi

Monsters, and Facebook (Ofcom, 2013; Austin, 2013); most are age appropriate,

others not. Livingstone and Brake (2010) talked about the new opportunities that social networking provides for children. The focus of their article is children / young people, where they differentiate between age groups. These authors

identified that there were pros and cons with social networking; generally they perceived it positively. They believed social networking could provide children with a wide social network of friends, which Boyd (2014) and the Pew studies (2011) also found in their research with young people.

One of the main behaviours Livingstone and Brake (2010) focused on was

identity; the presentation of self on the internet. This links very much with

children's development, particularly towards the latter end of middle childhood (Erikson, 1963, 1968). Children's identity starts to become important to them, just as it is for young people (Collins et al., 2012; Madsen & Susman-Stillman, 2012; Steinberg & Silk, 2012). Livingstone and Brake (2010) maintain that children have a strong desire to connect with others. They believe that identities are

constructed through interaction with others, similar to Bronfenbrenner’s (1979) ideas. Social networking allows children to connect with others without the embarrassment of face-to-face interactions, helping with identity development.

Livingstone and Brake (2010) highlight how social networking sites are in fact targeted at young people and adults, however children are able to access them. They state that many 8 - 12 year olds have a social networking profile (as evidenced from Ofcom, 2008a, 2008b). Recent figures from Ofcom (2013) show that there is a slight decline in social networking for children, although the overall trend has been on the increase since 2008. Livingstone and Brake (2010)

acknowledge there are concerns with social networking, particularly with cyberbullying and the need for children to keep information private on these sites, but they believe it can have benefits.

It is important to note that children need to take care on these sites, as they can get themselves into difficulties. For example Hasebrink et al. (2011) found that children were not good at keeping some of their information private on the internet, compared to young people who understood the importance. There are ways children can participate in social networking via sites that have been specifically created for them such as Moshi Monsters and Club Penguin, which

are monitored. Children need to be careful with social networking during middle childhood, particularly if they want to avoid negative communications.

Ofcom's (2008 - 2014) series of reports, using large scale studies with mainly survey methods, have also considered children’s / young people’s social networking. They found that many middle years children had a social network profile, which they shared with their friends. Children were interested in Club Penguin and

Moshi Monsters, which were perceived as safe sites. There were a number of

aspects associated with social networking which children disliked and felt they needed to be cautious about. Children were thus not happy to give out their personal details. Further, most said they did not link up with people that they did not know.

Ofcom’s studies show that children themselves were concerned about social networking and seemed to understand the risks. Overall, there seems to be mixed findings on children’s engagement with social networking, with evidence of other children being less aware of the risks (Hasebrink et al., 2011). Factors such as age and skill may influence children’s use of the internet for

communication. Parents can support children’s use and the current research will see how they do this.

In summary the literature, mainly from child psychology and social psychology, highlights freedom to search for information, safety (on games) and

communication (social networking) as providing the basis for children's use of the

internet. Over time there seems to be a growing awareness within society about children's internet safety; moving from a position of little concern to greater concern. Different internet safety strategies have since been introduced (Byron, 2008, 2010) with some success. For example Ofcom (2014) is now reporting fewer concerns amongst parents about children’s use of the internet. Importantly too, children's play on the internet should not always be viewed as problematic (Sandvig, 2006). It would seem similar to television that children can learn from their internet experiences, particularly with parents’ support. From the literature

reviewed on the internet, freedom to communicate with others matters to children.

Trying to distinguish between children's use and young people's use of the internet within studies has sometimes been difficult. There have been

improvements within more recent studies. It is useful to distinguish between age groups because of the developmental differences between children and young people, which will influence what they access and how they communicate on the internet. Young people may prefer social networking; catching up on the latest gossip. Children may prefer accessing a game involving an animated character. It is important to understand what is unique about children’s use of the internet, which can be helped by comparing it with young people’s use. The literature reviewed on the internet has helped to identify children’s areas of interest for the research.