Quotes from rangatahi—how content impacts them

How content they see impacts them

(This includes online pornography, online body image content and extremely harmful and potentially objectionable content)

“I think it is a big issue. But it does differ from person to person because of the algorithm. The more that you interact with something, the more that it shows up.” CLINICAL PARTICIPANT

“Social media has a huge impact on body image. I remember watching videos when I was probably six years old, just the videos come up on your feed […] and little six-year old me was learning about, like, how Victoria’s Secret models would starve themselves and stuff. I think all those things collected in my head.” CLINICAL PARTICIPANT

“They just looked perfect, and it made me think, My God, this is what guys are seeing and I do not look anything like this.’ It just made me feel so sad.” F15NZE*

“For me and my friends and people that I know, the impact of the things that they see online have life-long effects to their mental health and it can be pretty detrimental for a few people.” FEMALE, 17, NZ EUROPEAN

I think a lot of it is definitely confusion because I don’t know what this is. I’ve never talked about it. M17NZE

F: I think it depends. I think each person is obviously different and feels differently based on what they see. But I think after a while, you almost become… like it doesn't seem like a big deal. The spectrum kind of changes and it kind of increases … you're more tolerant. COMMUNITY GROUP PARTICIPANTS

“With gay people, or bi people, or transgender or something like that. There’s always somebody out there that experienced the same thing as them and want to give other people advice, and try to help them get through it in a way that they couldn’t.” FEMALE, 17, MĀORI & NZ EUROPEAN

Maybe it's even something you weren't meant to see. I’m just thinking… you're just scrolling and then it comes up, and you weren't even searching for it, and it’s really bad, and then that stays with you … like all those … when the Christchurch… that was all live streamed. Lots of people weren't even trying to find it. MALE – FORMER YOUTH ADVISORY PANEL MEMBER

When you see something like that … you think about it at first and feel weird when you see it. Then later, you might not think about it as much, but when you go back to it, those feelings come up again. MALE – SCHOOL GROUP

It definitely depends on the society that you're in. I feel like it'll stick to you more if the society that you're in deems it taboo to talk about. FEMALE – FORMER YOUTH ADVISORY PANEL MEMBER

“There’s a lot of movements in a lot of queer spaces online, they are good communities generally. And I think there’s a lot of positive stuff starting to come through, specifically about loving yourself for who you are.” FEMALE, 17, NZ EUROPEAN

You know how sometimes you'll be like, "That video I watched, and I never forgot it," type thing. So say it was like a beheading. I'm sure if someone's watching that it's not something that they're just gonna be able to forget, it's gonna stick with them. MALE – FORMER YOUTH ADVISORY PANEL MEMBER

“You see one thing and you’re like, ‘oh, this makes sense.’ Because it’s a mild view of the sort of group. And then you’re like, ‘this is reasonable. And this makes sense.’ Then you interact with it and then the algorithm goes, ‘Oh, you like this thing. Here’s this insane view from the same people.’” TRANS OR GENDER DIVERSE, 17, NZ EUROPEAN

Sources of participant quotes

M15 NZE / M16 NZE / F15 NZE etc. Classification Office – Te Mana Whakaatu Growing Up with Porn (2020).

FEMALE, 14, MĀORI, PACIFIC & NZ EUROPEAN / FEMALE, 17, NZ EUROPEAN etc. Classification Office – Te Mana Whakaatu Digital Reflections: The online experience andits influence on youth body image in Aotearoa (2024).

SCHOOL GROUP PARTICIPANT / FORMER YOUTH ADVISORY PANEL MEMBER / COMMUNITY GROUP PARTICIPANTS / CLINICAL PARTICIPANT Classification Office- Te Mana Whakaatu Content that Crosses the Line: Conversations with young people about extremely harmful content online (2025)