2016 Downtown Lecture Series
October 19, 2016
with Chris Segrin, Stephen Balkam, & Amanda Lenhart
From baby photos posted on grandma’s Facebook page to Snapchat selfies, today’s children and teens are growing up publicly online. The unprecedented rise of virtual interactions and access to digital information raises concerns about how new technology is influencing young people and their relationships with peers, loved ones, and the world at large. How is the first digital generation managing their online identity and interactions and how will they redefine “privacy"? How is the digital divide influencing the way kids and parents communicate? What can families, schools, communities, and kids do to ensure safe and fulfilling interactions in an online world?
About the Speakers
Chris Segrin is chair of the UA Department of Communication and a behavioral scientist who studies interpersonal relationships and mental health. His research focuses on social skills, and such problems as depression, anxiety, and loneliness, in addition to communication in marriage and families.
Stephen Balkam is founder and CEO of the Family Online Safety Institute (FOSI), an international, nonprofit organization that strives to make the online world safer for kids and their families.
Amanda Lenhart is a senior research scientist at the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and serves as a researcher at the Data & Society Research Institute. Ms. Lenhart is currently leading a research project for the Digital Trust Foundation and previously spent more than 15 years studying the use of digital media and technology by teens, young adults, children and families at the Pew Research Center.