Research on Methods of Prevention Among Young People as Users of Social Networks

Introduction

Social networks provide important opportunities for communication, learning, creativity and social participation, but they also expose young people to multiple and rapidly changing risks. The report approaches prevention as a multidimensional process requiring education, critical thinking, technical safeguards, family and professional support and greater responsibility from digital platforms.

The study was developed within the Erasmus+ project Prevention of Youth Risky Viral Trends and focuses on young people aged 14–29 in Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Poland and Austria.

Aim and research tasks

The aim was to identify, analyse and systematise methods for preventing social-media-related risks and harms among young people. Four tasks guided the work: review international good practices; analyse prevention practices in the four partner countries; examine prevention methods from the perspective of young users; and formulate a practical set of preventive methods suitable for youth work and education.

Materials and methods

A mixed-methods design combined desk research and survey research. The desk component included review of good practices and innovations, scientific literature, official reports and databases, platform policies and emerging trends.

The survey assessed social-media habits, risk awareness, known protective methods and behavioural responses to specific online threats. The total sample comprised 392 young people: 275 from Bulgaria, 30 from North Macedonia, 41 from Poland and 46 from Austria.

Bulgarian subgroup: awareness and protective knowledge

The Bulgarian subgroup included 275 participants: 95% were aged 14–18 and 5% aged 19–29; 52% were male and 48% female; 97% were students. For 75%, internet access during holidays was considered essential, and 80% believed that the internet contains content capable of causing harm.

The most frequently known protective behaviours were not trusting everything published online (73%), controlling one's own information (62%), checking whether a contact request comes from a known person or mutual contact (60%), rejecting requests from strangers (54%) and avoiding publication of personal information (54%).

Critical evaluation of information

Regarding fake news, 70% stated that they could distinguish false from true information, 10% said they could not, and 20% reported that the issue did not interest them. The analysis identified 159 young people who both recognised online risk and reported an ability to identify misinformation.

Cyberbullying and negative online experiences

If confronted with cyberbullying, 56% would talk to relatives or friends, 35% would search for information, 17% would watch an educational video, while 21% admitted they did not know how to respond.

More concerning patterns appeared for negative experiences generally: 57% reported that they would not share such experiences with anyone, 23% would ignore the problem and 4% did not know whom to tell. In online harassment scenarios, 60% would block the profile, but 43% might ignore the problem and around 14% might respond aggressively. Multiple responses were permitted, so percentages can exceed 100%.

Sensitive content and hate speech

66% of Bulgarian participants reported frequent exposure to videos with sensitive content. 44% would block the source, but 33% would continue watching out of curiosity.

When receiving hate-speech messages, about 48% would ignore and block the sender, 24% would delete the message, and 22% would respond in the same tone. 10% admitted having personally sent similar messages, with a further group reporting such behaviour as a response to provocation.

Protection of personal and financial data

80% reported understanding misuse of personal and financial data. The most familiar protection measure was an additional password or two-factor authentication, cited by about 60%. Avoiding disclosure of personal and financial data was identified in 56% of responses, while antivirus software was cited by 27%.

Addiction, stranger contact and risky behaviour

If a friend showed signs of social-media addiction, 50% would offer personal support, 23% would seek information on how to help and 22% did not know what to do. Another 17% did not consider addiction to be a problem.

When receiving an invitation to meet from an unknown profile, 42% would block the profile and 41% would delete or ignore the message, but 27% would communicate and potentially meet the person offline — a substantial residual safety risk.

Prevention requires a shared ecosystem

The study argues that effective prevention cannot be delegated to young users alone. Families should support age-appropriate mediation, communication and household media rules; schools and youth workers should provide structured digital- and media-literacy education; professional services should provide psychological, legal and safeguarding support; and technology companies should adopt safety-by-design principles, stronger reporting mechanisms, parental-control tools, warnings about excessive use and clearer handling of manipulated or harmful content.

Main contributions

• combines desk research with empirical evidence from 392 young people in four countries;
• moves from general risk awareness to concrete protective behaviour in realistic scenarios;
• quantifies areas in which young people still respond passively or riskily;
• identifies prevention as a shared responsibility of young people, families, educators, professionals, institutions and platforms;
• provides an empirical foundation for the subsequent prevention methodology and youth-worker handbook.

Conclusions

Awareness of online risks is not equivalent to sufficient preventive competence. Many young people know basic protective measures, yet passive or risky responses remain common in situations involving harassment, sensitive content, stranger contact and hate speech.

Prevention therefore requires continuous education in digital and media literacy, critical thinking, privacy, online conflict management and mental-health protection, supported by families, professionals and technology platforms.

Scientific Key Terms