Over 80% of parents, nearly 70% of youths back age-based social media access: MDDI
The Ministry of Digital Development and Information found that over 80 percent of parents support a tiered approach to social media access for children. Nearly 70 percent of youths also back this proposal. These findings came from engagements with over 2,000 parents and youth between June and August. The data was included in the first Online Safety Assessment Report from the Infocomm Media and Development Authority. The process involved school dialogues, focus group discussions, and a government survey platform.
Through a series of public engagements, the Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI) found that more than 80 per cent of parents and nearly 70 per cent of youths supported the Government's proposed tiered approach to social media access for children. In a media factsheet accompanying the release of the Infocomm Media and Development Authority's (IMDA) inaugural Online Safety Assessment Report on Saturday (Oct 24), the ministry said that the findings emerged from engagements with over 2,000 parents and youth from June to August this year.According to MDDI, the engagements included focus group discussions, school dialogues, and a survey on CrowdTaskSG — a government platform that allows citizens to share feedback and ideas with government agencies.But neither parents nor youths in Singapore favoured an outright ban on social media for children, MDDI noted, adding that both groups felt that education, digital literacy and graduated access would be more sustainable than blanket restrictions.