Online dating is a very common activity for most of the teens. Those who are into it for the first time can face a lot of problems if they are not careful. They should be ready to handle various kinds of situations and complications in a dating relationship. Due to lack of experience it can sometime affect negatively as well. There are many risks and other potential dangers out there waiting to pounce of your inexperienced teens. They can easily fall prey to someone who has been chatting for a long time. The fact is that most of the teenagers cannot identify what is true and what is false. This is a cause of great concern to the parents.
Is online dating a cause of concern?
Internet dating has become a popular pastime of many teenagers. They meet and chat with many new people daily trying to find new friends every time. Most of the teenagers do not understand the fact that most of the profiles on these dating sites are not real. They may be grownups also who pose like teenagers and want to take advantage of their innocence. There have been many warning stories where innocent teens were made victims. You have to take these things into consideration before letting your teen to date online. They must know that the person on the other end may not necessarily be telling you the truth.
There are different types of dating sites. Most of them offer free services where the teens can use them free of charge. This attracts most of the teens and they begin using these sites when they are free. Some sites may ask the users to pay a nominal fee for a membership or registrations. Whatever be the type of sites your teen uses, he has to be very careful while choosing the profiles for friendship. Some of them may be fake profiles to fool innocent teens. They have to keep off from such profiles to avoid dangers. Never part with all the information regarding your personal details to strangers online.
Online dating problems teens can encounter
Teenagers experience a lot of pressures everyday due to their biological changes and other day-to-day problems they have to face among their friends or at school. Apart from that, the online dating teenagers may be at a greater risk if they have some dating problems. Some of the potential problems the teens can face due to online dating are given below.
1. Substance abuse: According to a study conducted in 2004, teenagers who spend more than 25 hours with their partner are more prone to substance abuse compared to others who spend only less than 10 hours per week with a partner. They are more likely to use drugs, get drunk and smoke. The study also found that girls who dated boys who were older to them were more likely to try marijuana, smoke or consume alcohol.
2. Dating violence: According to the Centers for Disease Control, dating violence can be in different forms. Physical violence can be in the form of hitting, kicking, shoving and other aggressive acts. Emotional abuse may be in the form of bullying, verbal abuse, shaming, isolating or intentionally embarrassing a partner. Sexual abuse can be forcing the person to involve in a sexual act without her will. Reports suggest that at least 10 percent of the teenagers complain about various kinds of abuses through online dating.
3. Risky sexual behavior: Most of the teens who are dating online may find time to indulge in sex which can be risky for their health. And at least 25 percent of these people are known to contact sexually transmitted diseases. Some of the diseases that are transmitted in this way include human pappilomavirus, syphilis, HIV, gonorrhea, clamydia and herpes.
Precautionary tips for parents
The best way to deal with such situations is to prevent them in the first place. If you want to prevent such instances, you need to talk to your teens about online dating and make them understand about the pros and cons related to it. This will help them to be very careful and take the right steps when they are engaged in online dating. Here are a few tips for parents to overcome this problem.
1. First of all, take time and talk to your teen about online dating. But ensure that he should not misunderstand that by talking you are giving him the permission to go on dating immediately.
2. Discuss about the pros and cons. Tell him how it can lead to wastage of money, time and energy. Try to get him involved in other interesting activities other than dating.
3. Teach him to be responsible while dating and treat the other person with respect and concern. Tell about your expectations and that you want him to develop good values.
4. Listen to him and know about his opinion on online dating. If there are any misconceptions you have to clear them.
5. Talk to him about sex. Let him know to uphold the family values and expectations. He should be able to take proper decisions in such activities.
6. Explain to him that dating is for fun. If there are any instances of threat in any way, he has to seek your help. You have to assure him that you are always there to help in case of any difficulties.
