TikTok content material highlights flaws in sexual schooling in accordance with new paper

Youngsters and younger adults who flip to TikTok for sexual schooling could also be weak to misinformation, in accordance with an article co-authored by College of Houston Legislation Heart Analysis Assistant Professor Leah Fowler of the Well being Legislation & Coverage Institute.

“Intercourse Training on TikTok: A Content material Evaluation of Themes” was printed earlier this 12 months within the peer-reviewed journal Well being Promotion Follow. Fowler’s co-authors included Johns Hopkins College Assistant Professor Stephanie Morain, Baylor School of Drugs Well being Coverage Fellow Hadley Stevens Smith and Lauren Schoen, a former analysis coordinator on the Baylor School of Drugs and a J.D. candidate at The College of Texas College of Legislation.

TikTok is a video-based social media platform that options short-form movies. It was initially launched in September 2016 and reached greater than 1 billion international energetic customers, the corporate mentioned in a press release launched in September.

“TikTok is a well-liked social media platform amongst adolescents,” the article acknowledged. “For some, it additionally serves as a supply of intercourse schooling, with movies doubtlessly reaching hundreds of thousands of viewers in the USA and billions of viewers worldwide. This ecosystem exists largely exterior the view of fogeys, well being care suppliers, and educators and could also be offering a separate intercourse schooling curriculum from that taught in houses, physician’s places of work, and faculties. The overwhelming majority of movies are user-generated content material, with a small subset produced by personal or public entities, like an organization advertising a product.

“Consequently, not all movies present factual info. Whereas TikTok’s Neighborhood Pointers and Phrases of Service at the moment appear to anticipate the creation of instructional movies concerning the human physique, the app doesn’t regulate or oversee the content material or present disclaimers about misinformation or unverified claims past prohibiting and moderating the manufacturing of pornographic or in any other case inappropriate content material.”

The examine discusses the restricted attain of sexual schooling, which historically is taught at faculties, at dwelling or in group and spiritual facilities. The examine means that stakeholders like dad and mom, clinicians and educators needs to be proactive in initiating conversations about sexual well being subjects whereas offering factual info.

“Whereas teenagers profit from a personal area to discover these themes, passive video consumption doesn’t present avenues to ask questions or search further info from a trusted useful resource,” the article mentioned. “Whereas some obstetricians, gynecologists, and different well being care professionals have actively engaged in TikTok as widespread content material creators, offering science-based content material, answering questions posed by different customers, and responding to incorrect viral movies, the ever-growing amount of content material accessible on TikTok makes responding to all misinformation impractical, and there’s no assure a person will ever encounter these corrective movies.”