Indian hawk-eyed parents ensure digital well-being of GenZ children, Snapchat research shows

• India recorded the highest digital well-being by country at 68, indicating an overall positive social media experience for Generation Zs.
  
• India topped the charts due to increased parental involvement and number of support resources.
  
• Increased parental vigilance also ensures that GenZ teens and adults alike, when harassed online, will turn to them for help.

All the digital vigilance of Indian parents seems to be paying off as the country’s GenZ teens and adults — aged 13 to 24 — top the digital well-being index (DWI) compiled by Snapachat.

India topped the list of six countries included in the survey. This is due to increased parental involvement and a greater number of support resources – teachers, friends, mentors and a stronger social network, says snapchat‘s inaugural report Digital Wellbeing Index 2022.

India recorded the highest DWI by country with 68, indicating an overall positive social media experience for Generation Z. The index is calculated by measuring the impact of online activities measured by positive and negative emotions, engagement, relationships and performance.

The impact of being online is divided into four categories: thriving (extremely positive), thriving (mostly positive), average (all mixed reactions), and struggling (negative social media impact).

India had the highest percentage of thriving and thriving respondents, with a greater return on their social media presence thanks to their parents’ measured but impactful involvement, according to the report.

“The subgroup of parents who did not regularly inquire about teens’ online experiences significantly underestimated (by nearly 20 points) the risk of teens’ exposure to online harassment,” the report said.

India was followed by the US, Australia, UK, France and Germany.

“Less than one in five French parents have contacted teenagers about their online activities. France has the lowest percentage of thriving and thriving respondents. Indian teens are notable for their wealth of support resources. Germany has the highest percentage of struggling GenZ population. France has the highest percentage of middle class,” Snapchat revealed.

India is at high risk of teen exposure to online bullying

Indian GenZs are online between 2 and 4 hours every day and are exposed to many risks: online harassment, deliberate embarrassment, fake news, sexual solicitation, thoughts of self-harm and name calling.

Despite India having the largest number of thriving and thriving participants because they are online, it is important for parents and social networks to keep an eye on these high achievers.

Globally, one in seven GenZ participants had contemplated self-harm. While the incidence of self-harm decreased with a high DWI, those with a high DWI were more likely to continue with the thought of self-harm because of the high pressure to perform, Snapchat reported.

“Our research on digital well-being yielded findings about Generation Z’s exposure to online risks, their relationships, particularly with their parents, and their reflections on their activities in the previous months,” said Jacqueline Beauchereglobal head of platform safety at Snapchat.

More GenZs turned to their mothers rather than their fathers for emotional support. Snapchat revealed that parents’ ability to accurately gauge their teen’s digital well-being was driven by parents checking in regularly.

Increased parental vigilance also ensures that GenZ teens and adults alike, when harassed online, will turn to them for help. An estimated 52% of GenZs sought help from parents after being at risk of online bullying, non-consensual image sharing, trolls, threats and more.

SEE ALSO: From translating chats to media rights and more, Telegram has announced new features

BYJU misses March 2023 deadline for group-level profitability, results are delayed again