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In 2010, science told us that being online was good for kids. Then it changed its mind. Why?

2026-03-11 23:25:00Lifestyle SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX

Corriere della Sera retraces the history of how the internet and then social networks were opened up to children and adolescents. The article shows how scientific studies, the development of technology and the rise of social platforms changed society's perception: from the idea that the internet would bring a "perfect future", to concerns about depression, anxiety and addiction to social networks.

In 2009, researcher Shirley Atkinson warned that excessive fear of the Internet for children would not solve the problem. According to her, even if parents banned access from home computers, children would find other ways to connect to the network.

The debate on the Internet and minors reached its peak in October 2010, during the European Forum on Internet Safety in Luxembourg, where the results of the EU Kids Online project were presented. The study involved more than 25,000 children from 25 European countries, aged 9-16, with interviews conducted in their homes and with the participation of parents.

The project was led by sociologist Sonia Livingstone of the London School of Economics, who has long studied children's relationship with digital media. The results showed that online dangers existed, but were much rarer than previously thought. Most children used the network for school research and to communicate with friends.

The study reached an important conclusion: the children who benefited most from the Internet were also those who were exposed to the most risks. Therefore, the solution was not a ban, but digital education and the development of the ability to identify risks. The researchers recommended that parents be more involved and learn how the Internet works themselves, also using tools such as parental controls.

At that time, there was great optimism about technology.

Wired journalist Steven Berlin Johnson, in his book Future Perfect (2012), argued that billions of people connected to the internet would collaborate to create solutions to the world's problems.

Such examples seemed to confirm this idea.

In 2014, a 12-year-old Indian-American boy named Shubham Banerjee built a low-cost Braille printer in his garage using a LEGO Mindstorms robotics set. His project, called BraiGo, attracted investment from Intel and became a symbol of the creative potential of a new generation connected to technology.

However, while there was talk of young creators and programmers who would change the world, the reality of the internet was changing. Social networks were growing rapidly and most young people were spending more and more time following content on platforms like Instagram and TikTok, selected by algorithms that aimed to keep them online as long as possible.

The first study linking social media use to mental health problems was published in 2012 by Serbian professor Igor Pantic. He found a statistical link between time spent on social media and depression among high school students.

However, it remained unclear whether social media caused depression or whether young people with emotional problems spent more time online.

The debate intensified in 2017 when psychologist Jean Twenge from the University of San Diego analyzed data on the mental health of American teenagers and noted a marked deterioration since 2012. In her 2018 book, she linked this trend to the increase in smartphone use and screen time.

Another important study was published in 2019 by epidemiologist Kira Riehm. She identified a critical threshold: teenagers who spent more than 3 hours a day on social media had a significantly higher risk of anxiety, depression, and feelings of isolation.

Then, in 2021, former Meta employee Frances Haugen published documents showing that the company was aware of the negative effects of its algorithms on teenagers, but had continued the activity for profit reasons.

In February 2024, the city of New York, along with its schools and hospitals, announced that it would take legal action against social networks, relying precisely on these studies and the documents published by Haugen.

This development marks the transition from boundless optimism about the internet to a new phase of confronting its consequences, especially for young people, a debate that is today turning into a broad movement of parents and institutions against the technology giants.


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