Childhood for Sale: Unraveling the Commodification of Children in the Realm of Mengwa-Child Influencers

Abstract

The Internet's quick development has given people access to a wider audience. Anyone can use this platform to create their own content as a self-media creator. In November 2021, the General Office of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism issued the "Opinions on Strengthening the Protection of Minors in the Online Cultural Market, strictly prohibiting the use of "Child Influencers" for profit. Based on this phenomenon, this article focuses on a group of child influencers to explore the impact of children's commercialization on their physical and mental health. Therefore, the psychology of the child can answer this question. Observe their physical and mental health problems in the self-media environment, and understand the new changes of children in the network society. The results found that child influencers who have been exposed to social media for a long time are more likely to have value deviations, anxiety, an obsession with virtual identities, and a tendency to become adults.