What’s the issue?
If your child has access to a mobile phone, laptop, tablet or any other internet-enabled device – or if they have any friends or siblings that do – then it is very likely that they will see pornography, even if they never seek it out. They may even make their own pornography – because they’d like to or because they are pressured to do so by a partner or peers. For many young people, it’s now harder to avoid pornography than to see it.
Things to know
Many adults are unaware of how pervasive pornography has become, the nature of the material young people see or how it is affecting young people’s sexual understandings and experiences. In order to assist young people to navigate this new reality, parents, schools and community organisations must first understand the issues.
What can you do? Pornography’s influence poses many challenges for young people, for the adults who live or work with them and for society in general.