New Study: 27% of Teens Upload Videos of Themselves

According to a new study from Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project more than a quarter, or 27%,  of  teenagers surveyed record video of themselves and put it online. Lots of interesting current data about how teenagers use technology – especially concerning changes in online behaviour since 2006. Download PDF of research here

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Majority of Teens Use Texting to Ask Out Their Prom Date

Today’s teens send an average of 60 text messages a day, according to a recent Pew Research study, and that preferred method of communication is evident in the results of a new survey on proms. A survey of 1,243 teenagers between the ages of 13 and 17 by the company TextPlus finds 58 percent of […]

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With Teen Substance Use, It May Really Take A Village

New research suggests successful parenting of a teenager needs to include keeping track of their peers — and even the peer’s parents. While the task may seem daunting, researchers discovered parents were impressed that they could not only influence their own children, but they can also have a positive influence on their children’s friends as […]

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Marijuana Use Up 80 Percent Since 2008 Amongst US Teens

Nationally projectable survey results released today by The Partnership at Drugfree.org and MetLife Foundation found that past-month marijuana use – particularly heavy use – has increased significantly among U.S. high school students since 2008. The Partnership Attitude Tracking Study, sponsored by MetLife Foundation, found that 9 percent of teens (nearly 1.5 million) smoked marijuana heavily […]

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How Parents Can Shape Teenage Self-Esteem

When we think of parents and their child’s self-esteem our thoughts tend to focus on how parent’s praise or criticise their kids. Such thinking is understandable, as the words parents use do have significant impact. However parents can have a much greater role in shaping their teen’s sense of self worth and esteem. There are […]

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Some Teenagers Wired For Addiction

In the largest imaging study of the adolescent brain ever conducted — involving 1,896 14-year-olds — scientists report in Nature Neuroscience that some teenagers may be more inclined to experiment with drugs and alcohol, simply because their brains work differently, making them more impulsive. Read full news report  here Journal abstract here

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Interesting Generational Research

Lee Rainie, Director of the Pew Internet and the American Life Project, recently spoke at the annual conference of the National Religious Broadcasters. This presentation focused on the media habits of Millennials and GenX and how their patterns of gathering and creating information are different in the digital age. See slideshow here or watch below […]

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Most Alcohol & Drug Abuse Starts in Teen Years

A survey of more than 10,000 teens, published in the Archives of General Psychiatry, found that almost four out of five teens had tried alcohol and more than 15 percent were abusing it by the time they turned 18-years-old. Some 16 percent were abusing drugs by the age of 18. Read full article here Original […]

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