Instagram rolls out more parental tools to help supervise children
Instagram just rolled out a new update that would give parents additional "peace of mind" and keep children’s "well-being" from using the platform.
On Tuesday, June 14, Meta said in a blog post that it is adding additional parental control features to Instagram, as well as features that will allow teens to better manage their time on the app.
📣 New Features 📣
— Adam Mosseri (@mosseri) June 14, 2022
Today, we’re announcing new tools and resources designed to support parents, guardians and teens on Instagram and in @MetaQuestVR.
- Updated Supervision Controls
- Take a Break
- Nudges
More info here 👉🏼 https://t.co/DtSG9k8sXC pic.twitter.com/6EgwyJZtR8
In March 2022, Instagram initially launched the first set of parental supervision tools in the United States. Through this update, parents and guardians may view the child's screen time and set time limits, be notified when the child has reported someone, and get updates on the following and followers list of their child.
Now, parents and guardians will also have the power to limit their children’s use of Instagram at specific times during the day or week once they gain supervision access to their children’s Instagram accounts.
Meta also gives parents and guardians access to information when their children report an account or post, including the person reported and the type of report.
Meta said these tools would only be available this month in the United Kingdom, Japan, Australia, Ireland, Canada, France, and Germany, and plans to roll out to more countries before 2023.
Aside from parental controls, Meta also updated Instagram with a “nudge” feature that would encourage their children “to switch to a different topic if they’re repeatedly looking at the same type of content on Explore.”
Meta said nudge would allow children “to discover something new and excludes certain topics that may be associated with appearance comparison.”
“We designed this new feature because research suggests that nudges can be effective for helping people—especially teens—be more mindful of how they’re using social media in the moment,” added Meta.
Soon, Meta also plans to improve Instagram’s Take a Break feature, which the social media firm implemented in December 2021, that would remind children to take time off from using Instagram. With the upcoming update, children will also soon get a reminder to take a break while browsing Reels.
These new and upcoming features came after reports and research revealed that Instagram has harmful effects on the mental health of teenagers.