Most parents know there are countless videos out there on the internet not suitable for children. And too many parents still assume their children won't see these videos unless they actively go looking for them.
Worse still, many videos don't even need to be watched - the often provocative preview thumbnails for videos are enough to convey a message to children swiping through suggestions on a video platform.
According to a US study, these sometimes try to shock users on platforms like YouTube to get the viewer to tap on the video. How can children be protected from this?
Anyone who uses video platforms such as YouTube knows that you always receive suggestions for further videos to encourage you to keep watching.
Here is where you - or your children - can expect to be confronted with clickbait, both in the thumbnail images and in the headline. However, according to researchers from the University of Michigan, little research has been done into what children see as a result.
Children are attracted to adult content
Of course, there are also video platforms especially for children that offer an age-appropriate selection of videos. However, these are usually only of interest to a very young age group, says youth protection expert Benjamin Thull from Germany's State Institute for Communication (LFK) in the state of Baden-Württemberg.
Children over a certain age quickly realise that the much more exciting content can be found on the open platforms for adults.
"A children's channel is interesting and educational, but not as appealing as content that is scary, disturbing or bizarre," agrees media scientist Christian Schicha from Germany's University of Erlangen.
For the study, published in the specialist journal Jama, the US experts simulated search queries on YouTube from children aged 6 to 11. At this age, children use media more independently and rarely watch content made especially for them, they explained. The researchers used widely used search terms at this age, among others popular computer games, influencers and funny content like memes.
They then analysed which videos were suggested, clicked on one of them at random and looked at which suggestions appeared at the end of the video. Almost 2,900 thumbnails were collected in this way, and the researchers analysed their presentation.
Gender stereotypes appear particularly often
The researchers categorized the majority of these thumbnails as highly attention-grabbing or problematic. For example, they used dramatic, confusing, scary or shocking motifs to get attention. According to the study, many also relied on gender stereotypes, such as exaggerated male or female bodies or sexual innuendo.
What's more, the longer the researchers looked at these videos recommended by the platform, the more their number increased. In contrast, other problematic videos were not suggested more often.
The authors of the study did not investigate what this does to children and how it affects their media consumption. Further research is needed on this, they write.
From the point of view of Erlangen researcher Schicha, the results show that children are exposed to clickbait on video platforms, which is highly problematic and can be disturbing. "I find this shocking, especially as there are no barriers to accessing these images, even if they are just still images."
The images could influence how children think simply because of their sheer volume, says youth protection expert Thull. For example, they might start to think that appearance is crucial for social recognition. Or that it is socially acceptable to watch videos of accidents because there are so many of them on the platforms.
"I believe that ultimately the video has much more impact," Thull says. The problem with thumbnails, however, is that you can't avoid them. Even if you decide not to watch a video, the content of the thumbnail has already left its mark. It is therefore difficult to protect children from them.
What can you do about it?
"The thumbnails themselves are generally not subject to rules. So it's not something that can be prohibited by law or regulation," explains Thull. Exceptions include pornographic or extremely violent content that violates legal requirements or platform guidelines and therefore often cannot be uploaded at all.
However, he does not believe it makes sense to take action against content that is intended to generate a particularly high number of clicks. "It's not something that can be banned," he says. What's more, you can't tell a platform to do more about it.
He and Schicha therefore believe it is important to educate children and young people about how these video preview images work and to teach them media skills.
"In the family, at school, in other words, wherever education takes place, this must be emphasised," says Schicha. "You should try to create a trusting relationship with your children, talk to them about such images and make them realise that looking at them is not good for their mental health."
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