A systematic review on design-based nudges for adolescent online safety

Abstract

Within the realm of digital spaces, much of the nudging research has focused on general populations, which may not be applicable to nudges for adolescents, as minors are often more vulnerable to online risks and have unique developmental needs. To address this gap, we conducted a systematic literature review of 52 articles from the past 15 years that focused on technology-mediated nudges for teens’ online safety. We found that most nudges were designed for protecting teens as victims of cyberbullying in public settings, with recent trends towards studying nudges for diverse risk types and perspectives (e.g., risk perpetrators and bystanders). Most of the nudges were designed to be triggered during or after the risk occurrence, with fewer preventative approaches. Expanding upon Caraban et al.’s nudging framework, we found that commonly used mechanisms for nudges facilitated alternate actions or education, confronted youth with the consequences of risks, or involved parents. Lastly, most of the work focused on formative understanding or designing nudges for adolescents, with fewer ecologically valid evaluations of these nudges. We recommend building context-aware nudges with positive framing that can provide personalized guidance to help teens build resilience. We call for further investigation into how nudges can effectively empower adolescents in different cultural contextsby supporting autonomy and collective safety, while also confronting perpetrators and societal challenges for improved online safety outcomes. Finally, we provide guidelines to move towards realistic evaluations of nudges, and to engage with teens at every stage; from design to evaluations of online safety nudges.