ONLINE SHIELD - Study finds widespread support for regulating social media use by minors

One in every four Jamaican caregivers says children under their supervision have experienced sexual exposure or grooming attempts linked to social media use.

The finding formed part of a national study commissioned by the Ministry of Health & Wellness to guide potential state regulation of social media use for minors.

Of the 1,027 adult participants asked to indicate the kinds of negative encounters minors in their care have been exposed to, 16.5 per cent said sexual content, while 9.1 per cent said unwanted sexual messages or grooming.

A further 16.8 per cent said minors were exposed to violent/disturbing content; 16.9 per cent said because of social media they suffered sleep loss, anxiety, or emotional distress; and 12.9 per cent said they were exposed to harmful misinformation or dangerous online challenges.

Health Minister Dr Christopher Tufton said concerns about minors’ use of social media is viewed by the ministry as a matter of public health, noting that the findings of the report are intended for “public consumption and discourse”.

He said this will form the basis on which any informed position can be taken as part of the country’s approach to the response.

“The results show overwhelming public support for some levels of government action,” said Tufton.

According to the report, Public Perceptions of the Regulation of Social Media Use for Minors in Jamaica, 90 per cent of respondents support government regulation of social media use for minors, and 83.9 per cent agree that Jamaica needs a clear policy framework.

Some 40.5 per cent of participants named parents/guardians as the primary lead for protecting minors online, 39.1 per cent favoured a shared responsibility model across all stakeholders, while 12.7 per cent believed the Government should act alone.

Tied to ordinary activities

However, a balanced regulatory model combined with parent digital literacy training was the leading choice among social media users at 45.2 per cent, parents at 44.9 per cent, and caregivers at 44.7 per cent, well ahead of strong legal restrictions alone.

School/learning was the most common reported use at 75.9 per cent, followed by entertainment at 72.5 per cent, communication at 62.6 per cent, and gaming-related interaction at 48.5 per cent.

“These figures show that social media use among minors is not framed by respondents only as risky or inappropriate. It is also tied to ordinary activities, especially learning, leisure, and communication,” the report said.

It said lower figures were reported for news/information at 22.2 per cent, content creation at 12.3 per cent, dating/relationships at 5.8 per cent, business/marketing at 3.6 per cent, and other uses at 2.4 per cent, suggesting that respondents were mainly identifying everyday forms of use rather than more specialised online activities.

Participants supported a range of measures, including education, parental consent, age verification, content removal, privacy protections and platform accountability.

The report noted that support for regulation was especially strong when the statements were framed around child safety, parental consent, age verification, and a clear national framework.

The findings showed that agreement was highest for the view that regulation is worth pursuing even if difficult, at 90.7 per cent. Requiring parental consent for minors below a certain age to open accounts recorded 89.9 per cent, while government working with platforms recorded 88.8 per cent. Mandatory age verification stood at 87.5 per cent, and the view that regulation would improve child safety stood at 87.4 per cent.

Agreement was also high for Jamaica needing a clear policy framework for minors’ social media use at 83.9 per cent, balancing minors’ rights with online protection at 83.6 per cent, protecting minors online over unrestricted access at 83.1 per cent, and the government regulating social media use by minors at 80.8 per cent.

However, the report said the enforcement-related findings were more cautious. A majority agreed that regulation would be difficult to enforce in Jamaica, at 66.3 per cent, while 16.4 per cent were neutral, and 17.3 per cent disagreed.

In a separate set of statements on perceived impact, 87 per cent agreed that minors would likely find ways around regulation, and 80.7 per cent agreed that poorly designed regulation could create problems.

“This does not weaken the overall support for regulation, but it changes how that support should be read,” the report said.

Still, it said participants favour action, though recognising that regulation can fail if it is poorly designed, difficult to apply, or easy for minors to bypass.

“That concern is particularly relevant in Jamaica’s case because many of the major platforms used locally are owned and operated overseas, which limits how far local authorities can compel platform behaviour without cooperation,” the report said.

editorial@gleanerjm.com