Little Dopes: Digital Wellness for Families

When the Algorithm Becomes Your Son’s Role Model

• Little Dopes • Season 1 • Episode 3

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0:00 | 56:01

Your son did not necessarily search for the messages filling his feed. New research suggests masculinity content about money, muscles, status, dating and toughness is reaching most adolescent boys—and recommendation systems are often doing the delivery.

This episode looks beyond the panic. We explore what a major survey of boys found about algorithms, body image, loneliness, emotional pressure, influencers and gaming, alongside Australian eSafety research and a 38-country study of adolescent loneliness.

Most importantly, we ask what parents can actually do: how to start a conversation without ridicule, how to widen a feed without pretending online friendships are fake, and why real-world belonging remains such a powerful protection.

Read the paired Little Dopes articles at https://www.littledopes.com/research

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