The WAVE Project - When Adolescents' Voices are Expressed

The purpose of the current study is to give young adolescents (12-15 years old) the platform and opportunity to be part of the debate regarding social media. In society there are many concerns for the negative consequences of social media use among youngsters, often leading to restrictive policies. However, the societal perceptions of the negative ramifications of social media do not always match scientific evidence, nor are the insights of the user expert themselves considered. The current study therefore intends to firstly gain insights into the online activity of young adolescents, secondly encourage them to think about the opportunities and risks of social media, thirdly allow them to come up with their own policies on how to promote more positive social media usage, and lastly share these insights with a broad audience through a video.