Beyond Digital Literacy: Building Youth Digital Resilience Through Existing “Information Sensibility” Practices
Youth media consumption and disordered eating practices have historically been subjects of moral panics, often resulting in protective, deficit-based interventions like content removal. We argue for interventions which instead equip youth to evaluate and manage risks in their online environments, bu...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-04-01
|
| Series: | Social Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/14/4/230 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849713893043077120 |
|---|---|
| author | Amelia Hassoun Ian Beacock Todd Carmody Patrick Gage Kelley Beth Goldberg Devika Kumar Laura Murray Rebekah Su Park Behzad Sarmadi Sunny Consolvo |
| author_facet | Amelia Hassoun Ian Beacock Todd Carmody Patrick Gage Kelley Beth Goldberg Devika Kumar Laura Murray Rebekah Su Park Behzad Sarmadi Sunny Consolvo |
| author_sort | Amelia Hassoun |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Youth media consumption and disordered eating practices have historically been subjects of moral panics, often resulting in protective, deficit-based interventions like content removal. We argue for interventions which instead equip youth to evaluate and manage risks in their online environments, building upon their existing “information sensibility” practices. Drawing upon ethnographic research and intervention testing with 77 participants in the US and India, we analyze how youth (aged 13–26), including those with diverse political perspectives and those recovering from disordered eating (DE), engage with online news and health information. Participants generally algorithmically encountered (rather than searched for) information online, and their engagement was shaped more by social motivations—like belonging—than truth seeking. Participants interpreted online information collaboratively, relying on social cues and peer validation within their online communities. They demonstrated preference for personal testimonies and relatable sources, particularly those with similar social identities. We propose resilience-building interventions that build upon these youth online information practices by: (1) leveraging peer networks, promoting critical information engagement through collaborative learning and peer-to-peer support within online communities; (2) developing social media sensibility, equipping youth to critically evaluate information sources in situ; (3) providing pathways offline, connecting youth to desired in-person communities; and (4) encouraging probabilistic thinking. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-aec9c7421fb34aaabcba5c3c8c6379de |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2076-0760 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Social Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-aec9c7421fb34aaabcba5c3c8c6379de2025-08-20T03:13:50ZengMDPI AGSocial Sciences2076-07602025-04-0114423010.3390/socsci14040230Beyond Digital Literacy: Building Youth Digital Resilience Through Existing “Information Sensibility” PracticesAmelia Hassoun0Ian Beacock1Todd Carmody2Patrick Gage Kelley3Beth Goldberg4Devika Kumar5Laura Murray6Rebekah Su Park7Behzad Sarmadi8Sunny Consolvo9Darwin College, University of Cambridge, Silver Street, Cambridge CB3 9EU, UKGoogle (United States), 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USAGemic, 82 Nassau Street, #863, New York, NY 10004, USAGoogle (United States), 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USAGoogle (United States), 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USAGemic, 82 Nassau Street, #863, New York, NY 10004, USAGemic, 82 Nassau Street, #863, New York, NY 10004, USAGemic, 82 Nassau Street, #863, New York, NY 10004, USAGemic, 82 Nassau Street, #863, New York, NY 10004, USAGoogle (United States), 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USAYouth media consumption and disordered eating practices have historically been subjects of moral panics, often resulting in protective, deficit-based interventions like content removal. We argue for interventions which instead equip youth to evaluate and manage risks in their online environments, building upon their existing “information sensibility” practices. Drawing upon ethnographic research and intervention testing with 77 participants in the US and India, we analyze how youth (aged 13–26), including those with diverse political perspectives and those recovering from disordered eating (DE), engage with online news and health information. Participants generally algorithmically encountered (rather than searched for) information online, and their engagement was shaped more by social motivations—like belonging—than truth seeking. Participants interpreted online information collaboratively, relying on social cues and peer validation within their online communities. They demonstrated preference for personal testimonies and relatable sources, particularly those with similar social identities. We propose resilience-building interventions that build upon these youth online information practices by: (1) leveraging peer networks, promoting critical information engagement through collaborative learning and peer-to-peer support within online communities; (2) developing social media sensibility, equipping youth to critically evaluate information sources in situ; (3) providing pathways offline, connecting youth to desired in-person communities; and (4) encouraging probabilistic thinking.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/14/4/230information sensibilityyouthGen Zsocial mediadigital literacyonline information |
| spellingShingle | Amelia Hassoun Ian Beacock Todd Carmody Patrick Gage Kelley Beth Goldberg Devika Kumar Laura Murray Rebekah Su Park Behzad Sarmadi Sunny Consolvo Beyond Digital Literacy: Building Youth Digital Resilience Through Existing “Information Sensibility” Practices Social Sciences information sensibility youth Gen Z social media digital literacy online information |
| title | Beyond Digital Literacy: Building Youth Digital Resilience Through Existing “Information Sensibility” Practices |
| title_full | Beyond Digital Literacy: Building Youth Digital Resilience Through Existing “Information Sensibility” Practices |
| title_fullStr | Beyond Digital Literacy: Building Youth Digital Resilience Through Existing “Information Sensibility” Practices |
| title_full_unstemmed | Beyond Digital Literacy: Building Youth Digital Resilience Through Existing “Information Sensibility” Practices |
| title_short | Beyond Digital Literacy: Building Youth Digital Resilience Through Existing “Information Sensibility” Practices |
| title_sort | beyond digital literacy building youth digital resilience through existing information sensibility practices |
| topic | information sensibility youth Gen Z social media digital literacy online information |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/14/4/230 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT ameliahassoun beyonddigitalliteracybuildingyouthdigitalresiliencethroughexistinginformationsensibilitypractices AT ianbeacock beyonddigitalliteracybuildingyouthdigitalresiliencethroughexistinginformationsensibilitypractices AT toddcarmody beyonddigitalliteracybuildingyouthdigitalresiliencethroughexistinginformationsensibilitypractices AT patrickgagekelley beyonddigitalliteracybuildingyouthdigitalresiliencethroughexistinginformationsensibilitypractices AT bethgoldberg beyonddigitalliteracybuildingyouthdigitalresiliencethroughexistinginformationsensibilitypractices AT devikakumar beyonddigitalliteracybuildingyouthdigitalresiliencethroughexistinginformationsensibilitypractices AT lauramurray beyonddigitalliteracybuildingyouthdigitalresiliencethroughexistinginformationsensibilitypractices AT rebekahsupark beyonddigitalliteracybuildingyouthdigitalresiliencethroughexistinginformationsensibilitypractices AT behzadsarmadi beyonddigitalliteracybuildingyouthdigitalresiliencethroughexistinginformationsensibilitypractices AT sunnyconsolvo beyonddigitalliteracybuildingyouthdigitalresiliencethroughexistinginformationsensibilitypractices |