REAL WORLD SUPPORT: Adolescents see their online friends as generally more supportive than their in-person friends, but when they do have pals who can physically offer a hand or a hug, those friends provide a superior protective shield against bullying, a new study finds.
NEW YORK: Gay and lesbian adolescents see their online friends as generally more supportive than their in-person friends, but when they do have pals who can physically offer a hand or a hug, those friends provide a superior protective shield against bullying, a new study finds.
“LGBT youth are turning online for support,” developmental psychologist Catherine Bradshaw told Reuters Health. But, “they still need to have an authentic, in-person relationships in order to buffer the impact of victimisation,” she said.
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