Scholars around the world jointly publish an open letter calling for 'Mark Zuckerberg should take action on youth mental health right now.'
Scholars from around the world have jointly
OII | An Open Letter to Mr. Mark Zuckerberg: A Global Call to Act Now on Child and Adolescent Mental Health Science
https://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/an-open-letter-to-mark-zuckerberg/
Past research has revealed that 'the more you use Facebook, the less satisfied you are with your life ' and ' quitting Facebook will make you feel less depressed', and Facebook may have an adverse effect on your mental health. It has been suggested.
In addition, in September 2021, the Wall Street Journal reported that 'Facebook (now Meta) knew that Instagram was harmful to teens,' intensifying exchanges betweenFacebook and the media. I am.
Facebook continues to recognize that Instagram is harmful to teens-GIGAZINE
This time, the public letter was sent by a coalition of scholars with expertise in psychology, online technology, health, etc. There are 19 scholars from the University, University of California, Pittsburgh University, Bath Spa University Ono Academic College, Kinellet University, Hong Kong University of Education, Rennes II University, Carlton University, Griffith University, and Cambridge University. In addition, more than 350 scholars have agreed and signed the open letter, and it is possible to sign from the public page.
In the open letter, 'We are checking in-house research and related coverage on how Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp affect the mental health of children and adolescents. Unfortunately, Meta's mental health for children and adolescents. Health research is conducted without independent oversight, so we only have a fragmentary overview of the research that Meta is conducting, and so far Meta has published it. I don't think the methodology used in the research data meets high scientific standards. '
In addition, the Union of Scholars said, 'The tools Meta uses for its own research should not be developed without independent auditing. For sound science, before solid conclusions are drawn or new tools are announced. That is, you (Zuckerberg) and your organization (Meta) must match their own internal research on children and adolescents with scientific evidence and established standards on mental health. There is an ethical and moral obligation to not do it. '
In addition, because Meta's platform is used by 3 billion people, it is very likely that it will have a widespread impact on youth mental health, and Meta was independently investigating the impact on youth mental health. With that in mind, 'it's clear that the potential for Meta's platform to affect the mental health of young people is real,' the Union of Scholars pointed out.
And as a way Meta needs to generate credible scientific insights, the open letter states, 'Meta presents three concrete steps that Meta should really take seriously about a user's mental health.' 'Three actions required for'.
1: Work to establish standards and transparency in research on mental health in children and adolescents
2: Contribute to independent research on mental health of children and adolescents around the world
3: Probability of independent and reliable audits of mental health of children and adolescents on the Meta platform
The open letter concludes with 'Understanding and supporting the mental health of children and adolescents in the digital age is a bigger challenge that one individual, company or team can tackle. Your platform is in the public interest. We believe that it can play an important role in influencing billions of young people. This global challenge requires a global solution. We have Meta doing things better. We believe we can, and we are sending this open letter in the belief that we can help Meta, 'and we hope that Meta will accept the claims of the Union of Scholars.
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in Web Service, Posted by logu_ii