Overcoming strategies of adolescents’ risky online self-disclosure

Abstract

Aim. Adolescents’ online self-disclosure has a positive influence on adolescents’ development but may also be related to risks that adolescents may not be able to overcome. Thus, the purpose of this study is to find out what do adolescents think about the risks of online self-disclosure and what are the coping strategies they use to overcome these risks. Methods. To reach the purpose of the study, four focus groups were organized. Students were asked what they thought about online self-disclosure and what kind of strategies they used to overcome negative consequences of risky online disclosure. Content analysis was used to analyse the collected data. Twenty-one students (18 females and 3 males, 11-17 years), participated in the study. Results and conclusion. The results of the study show that the coping strategies adolescents use are: asking help from adults, stalker prevention, online privacy management, and awareness of online self-disclosure.