Youth Trust in Social Media Companies and Expectations of Justice

Abstract

Social media platforms aspire to deliver fair resolutions after online harassment. Platforms rely on sanctions like removing content or banning users but these punitive responses provide little opportunity for justice or reparation for targets of harassment. This may be especially important for youth, who experience pervasive harassment which can have uniquely harmful effects on their wellbeing. We conducted a text-message based survey with 832 U.S. adolescents and young adults, ages 14-24, to explore their attitudes towards social media companies' responses to online harassment. We find that youth are twice as likely (41% versus 20%) not to trust social media companies' ability to achieve a fair resolution as they are to trust them. Nearly two-thirds (62%) of youth expressed a preference for an apology from the offender after online harassment, and they were twice as likely to prefer a private apology to a public one (29% versus 14%). Preferences also vary by identity, revealing how a one-size-fits-all approach can harm some youth while benefitting others. We reflect on the opportunities and risks associated with institutional trust and restorative justice for supporting youth who experience online harassment.