Gone are the days when teenagers snuck out of their homes and lied to their parents about where they were going. Generation Z prefers their parents to monitor their every move.
Teenagers are happy that their parents can track their location at all times using a tracking app as this reduces their fear of kidnappings and terrorist attacks.
Some are turning to an app that allows friends and family members to track each other’s whereabouts through a location-sharing social network.
Life360 was founded in 2008 as a “family-oriented private social network.”
Since its inception, the app has expanded its purpose and developed features that allow parents to not only track the location of their children, but also monitor the speed at which they are driving, detect if they have been in a car accident, receive SOS alerts and even see if their children are using their phones while driving.
Emery Littig, 16, says her biggest fear is being kidnapped after seeing constant news coverage of the kidnapping and murder of a 10-year-old girl in Iowa. She started using Life360 before the kidnapping because she was “a very anxious child.”
Life360 is an app that allows friends and family members to track each other’s whereabouts through a location-sharing social network. The San Francisco-based company was founded in 2008 as a “family-oriented private social network”
Emery Littig, 16, says her biggest fear is being kidnapped after seeing constant news coverage of the kidnapping and murder of a 10-year-old girl in Iowa.
She said The Washington Post: ‘If something happens to me, I think it would be useful if my parents knew where I was last.’
She started using Life360 before the kidnapping because she was “a very anxious child.”
A yearbook survey from Emery’s school showed that half of the more than 1,500 students at her school had Life360 and that her entire group of friends used it to share all their locations.
Emery was in a minor car accident two hours from home while driving with her friends in Des Moines. Her friend’s sister rear-ended the car in front of them, and Emery’s parents received a notification from Life360 that the car had come to an abrupt stop.
Emery also said Life360 comes in handy at parties. When she was at a party where minors were drinking during her freshman year, a boy hit her and the teen felt unsafe in the situation. Luckily, she didn’t have to ask for the address of the party because her parents were able to find her location through Life360 and were able to pick her up within 20 minutes.
Young people today are exposed to non-stop news about war, terrorism, pandemics, murders, kidnappings and more through social media – providing graphic images and terrifying videos to illustrate these scary situations.
The increased awareness of danger makes young people feel safer because they know that their parents can see where they are at all times and can come to help if necessary.
A recent one Life360 survey found that 94 percent of Gen Z Americans say their lives benefit from location sharing, while 72 percent of Gen Z women believe their physical well-being benefits from location sharing.
The survey found that “safe” was the top term that came to mind for 66 percent of Gen Z respondents when they thought about location sharing.
According to the company, Life360 downloads in the US have doubled since 2021 due to the pandemic.
Teenagers are happy that their parents can track their location at all times using a tracking app as this reduces their fear of kidnappings and terror attacks
Due to the increased awareness of danger, young people feel safer because they know that their parents can see where they are at all times and can come to help if necessary
A recent Life360 survey found that 94 percent of Generation Z Americans say their lives benefit from location sharing, while 72 percent of Generation Z women believe their physical well-being benefits from location sharing
Life360’s website said: ‘For a generation that also came of age during the #MeToo movement, school shootings and a global pandemic – all of which have brought physical safety and well-being to the forefront of social consciousness – it’s no wonder that Generation Z is turning to location sharing as a crucial tool to ensure the safety of family and friends.’
Educational psychologist and author of Thrivers Dr. Michele Borba said: “The turbulence of Generation Z’s adolescence has created a mental health crisis that has only been exacerbated by the pandemic, social media and the 24-hour news cycle.
‘In uncertain times, this generation has come to long for the extra layer of security that location sharing provides.
As an activist generation, they naturally choose a proactive approach, such as location sharing, to ensure the well-being of their peers.’
Larken Hendricks, 17, first started using Life360 when she got her driver’s license. The roads she rides in Charlottesville, Virginia are winding and can be dangerous. So she feels safer knowing that her parents can find her quickly if she gets into a car accident.
Her younger siblings, 15 and 15, are on Life360 and her youngest brother, 9, will be added to the family network as soon as he gets a phone.
She said the app is usually not necessary because she always tells her mother where she is anyway.