By Thomas Bertalli

How Teens Use Social Networking Sites Most teens create at least a basic profile, with their name, age, status, photo and interests, but many go much further. Many teens make regular visits to update their profiles and to visit others' profiles. Communicating with others is a key aspect of using social networks. Teens may post public messages or may use bulletins or private messages to communicate with those on their friends list. Most teens use sites such as MySpace and Facebook to stay in touch with their current friends. However, PEW reports that about 50% of teenagers also use the sites to make new friends. Teenagers use the sites to make social plans with their friends, and sometimes to flirt.

Disadvantages with social networking and teens. Most social networking sites are open to your teen being exposed to harassment, bullying or sexual advances. Cyber-bullying and harassment are most often perpetrated by other teens and tend to happen most to older girls and to teens of either gender who have a strong online presence. It may take several forms: publicizing private instant messages, text messages or s posting threatening messages posting photos that will cause embarrassment spreading rumors

Social networking Safety It's up to parents to make sure their kids are safe when they use social networking. Many of the same rules that apply to online chat apply to these sites: Parents should investigate any sites they'd like to use. Find out what privacy protections are in place and insist that your teen uses them. For children under 16, that often means a private profile that can only be seen by approved friends.