Parents Trust Their Net Savvy Children

Reports of children surfing the Net like zombies, exposed to pornography, gore and virtual violence are disputed by a Reader's Digest survey which reveals that most parents trust their children to surf the Net safely and believe that it has a positive effect on their children's education.

A survey of 2000 adults was conducted by MORI throughout Great Britain. Among those, 199 parents with children aged 6 to 14 years who use the Internet were interviewed and the results are reported in the September issue of Reader's Digest.

• Just over three quarters (77%) of parents say that they trust their child to use the Internet sensibly.
• Almost all parents (96%) are convinced that their child has never been upset or distressed as a result of something they have seen on the Internet and 98% say their children have never bought anything that they could not pay for.
• 75% think that being able to use the Internet has a positive influence on their child's education.
• Most think that that their child is no less physically active nor less sociable as a result of using the Internet (89% and 92% respectively).

Very few parents feel that their child spends too much time online:

• A staggering 81% of parents disagree that their children spend too much time on the Internet.
• 67% of those parents whose children have access at home say their children only surf there for two hours or less a week.
• Only 2% log on for 11 to 20 hours a week, but even this tiny group is a long way off clocking up the estimated 21.3 hours a week British children spend watching TV.

However, parents do have concerns about the dangers their children may be exposed to online:

• Nearly half of the parents polled worry about their children accessing violent or sexually explicit material. And 43% are concerned about who their children might meet through chat rooms.
• Most parents have heeded the dangers of access in bedrooms where supervision is difficult. Only 20% of those with access at home log on from their bedroom; the vast majority gain access via communal family areas such as a study/office (30%), living room (23%) or a dining room (16%).
• 51% of parents whose children have access at home feel that it is necessary to supervise their child most or all of the time while they use the Internet.

Reader's Digest Editor-in-Chief Russel Twisk says: "The Reader's Digest survey shows that parents feel their children's use of the Internet is innocent enough. Unlike America where local calls are free, phone charges in the UK explain why British users spend less time than their US counterparts do surfing the Net. Although half the parents polled are concerned about the dangers lurking on the Net, the vast majority are very positive about the Internet's benefits and believe it helps their children."

Download the full report Children & the Internet [pdf format - 34k]

Technical details

MORI interviewed a representative quota sample of 199 parents with children aged 6 to 14 years who use the Internet in 153 sampling points throughout Great Britain. These were obtained by screening a nationally representative sample of approximately 2,000 people aged over 15 years. Interviews were conducted face-to-face in respondents' homes between 22nd and 27th June 2000.