A new 69-page report released by the Joan Ganz Cooney Center concludes that more research is needed to understand children and teenagers’ social-media habits. The Cooney Center is a nonprofit think tank founded by the Sesame Workshop in 2007 that focuses on learning through digital media.
The authors raise concerns about the lack of substantive research on children’s social-media habits and the rising popularity of social-networking sites marketed toward youths.
The report identifies key gaps in the current knowledge base in that area, such as a lack of focus on child-specific social-networking sites and the effects the digital divide has on lower-income communities.
The report argues that more research is needed about children younger than 9 because social-media interaction can play a part in shaping their development.
