Vaikų dienos centrą lankančių paauglių mergaičių veržimasis veikti virtualioje erdvėje

LTStraipsnyje pristatomi kokybinio tyrimo rezultatai, leidžiantys giliau suprasti vaikų dienos centrą (toliau - VDC) lankančių paauglių mergaičių dalyvavimo virtualioje erdvėje realybę. Taikant grindžiamosios teorijos metodologijos sisteminę versiją (Strauss & Corbin, 1990), pristatoma empirinių duomenų pagrindu sukonstruota kategorija- fenomenas - Veržimasis veikti virtualioje erdvėje: "Interneto socialiniai tinklai - laikmečio saldainiai". Straipsnyje analizuojamos išryškėjusio fenomeno priežastinės, kontekstinės ir įsiterpiančios sąlygos, atskleidžiamos VDC specialistų taikomos veiksmų / sąveikų strategijos, kuriomis siekiama pozityvių mergaičių dalyvavimo IST praktikų, bei šio fenomeno pasekmės. [Iš leidinio]Reikšminiai žodžiai: Dalyvavimas; Interneto socialiniai tinklai; Paauglės mergaitės; Involment; Involvement; Online social networks; Teenage girls.

ENOnline social networks are described as a fast-developing part of the Internet (Haataja, 2010); they unite people of common interests who themselves create the content of a particular website and interact with each other virtually (Wellman et al., 2009). By participating in online social networks (further referred to as OSN), young people often face a variety of risks that pose a threat to their safety. The problem of vulnerability on OSN is particularly acute in adolescence, since it is precisely at this age period when the peak of risky participation in online social networks is reached (Gamez-Guadix, Borrajo & Almendros, 2016; Paluckaitė Žardeckaitė-Matulaitienė, 2016). OSN as a particularly suitable environment for building relationships is especially valued by children at risk. The study by Livingstone and Helsper (2008) has revealed that adolescents at risk are the most vulnerable, as they find it possible to establish personal relationships on social networks, but fail to recognize the awaiting dangers. Adolescents who are less satisfied with their lives feel more confident and consider the online environment as an opportunity to eliminate a lack of communication (Pociūtė & Krancaitė, 2012; Livingstone & Helsper, 2008). Scientific studies (Notten, Nikken, 2014; Paluckaitė, Žardeckaitė-Matulaitienė, 2016) have identified the significance of the social context for risky involvement of adolescents in OSN: adolescents who are growing in dysfunctional and/or single-parent families often lack social skills; therefore, their participation in OSN is prone to higher risk exposures. In the context of adolescent vulnerability in OSN, the aspect of gender becomes relevant as well. According to the results of the study called "Life Online - Through Children's Eyes" (2017), girls spend more time communicating in social networks than boys.Therefore, teenage girls' communication in OSN might often lead to their greater vulnerability in the following aspects: harassment, bullying, persecution, exploitation, sexual harassment, or seduction (Dowdell & Bradley, 2010). Foreign researchers have analysed the problem of risky adolescents' involvement in social networks (Meter et al.; 2015; Doornwaard at al, 2015; Livingstone et al., 2014; Christofides et al., 2012; Kolpakova, Luybimova & Levina, 2012). A few studies (Paluckaitė & Žardeckaitė-Matulaitienė, 2016; Noll et al, 2013; Burrow-Sanchez et al, 2011; Bergman & Hutner, 2011) have identified the effects of the threats experienced by adolescents at risk on OSN; however a deeper and a more comprehensive research on girls' involvement in OSN is lacking. The object of the research is the expression of involvement in OSN among teenage girls attending a CDCC. The purpose of the research is to deepen the understanding of the involvement in OSN among teenage girls attending a CDCC. Tasks: To reveal the reasons that motivate teenage girls to participate in the OSN environment; To identify the contextual and intervening factors that determine the teenage girls' involvement in OSN; To highlight the strategies of actions/interactions of specialists of CDCCs in the process of adolescents' involvement in OSN and its consequences. The research has been accomplished by applying the grounded theory methodology (further referred to as GTM), a version of a systematic grounded theory developed by Strauss and Corbin (1990). The research was carried out in the period of 2015-2016, in Children Day Care Centres in various cities of Lithuania. Data on the experiences of specialists in this aspect of research have been collected by means of a semi-structured interview.The specialists of CDCCs have been chosen as the participants of the interview. The research involved 16 specialists from CDCCs of Vilnius, Kaunas, Klaipėda, Mažeikiai, Telšiai, Šiauliai, Skuodas cities and districts. The results of the research have enabled to view the experiences of the specialists of CDCCs from the point of view of teenage girls' involvement in OSN. The data reveal that teenage girls are motivated to participate in the virtual space by a social need - a desire to communicate; striving to experiment is also important, it is supported by an especially attractive environment of social networks. Another emerging reason is the fact that social networks are becoming a routine of today's society; therefore, the involvement in the virtual space becomes a necessity in order to become a modern member of society. Specialists notice that girls' desire to act on OSN emerges under certain conditions: it is especially important for girls that the Internet would be accessible anytime and anywhere, thus it is natural that virtual access in the CDCC environment becomes significant as well. On the other hand, it is noticeable that girls are very attracted to communication in virtual space because there they tend to behave very bravely, freely, hiding behind "masks", which allows them not to be afraid of being rebuffed, not appreciated. [...] Strategies of actions of CDCCs specialists have certain implications that enable to perceive that allowing girls to freely act on OSN is not successful. Specialists are concerned with the fact that teenage girls' actions on OSN often pose a threat to the well-being of their own and other OSN users; it encourages the specialists to pay more attention to this problem and inspires to search for effective solutions to this problem. [From the publication]

• Sociologija / Sociology
• Edukologija / Education