Heart-Mind 2015 In Profile: Amori Mikami

Amori Mikami invites you to explore your teenager’s digital and online world at Heart-Mind 2015. She hopes to answer the questions regarding online social interactions of how are they similar and different from face to face ones, and how do they affect adjustment? She will discuss the important cues to notice in your children’s online social interactions. But where do you, as an educator and parent, fit into the picture?

Amori states, “Parents and educators help teach teens the skills to interact successfully and also provide teens with opportunities to practice these skills with peers.”

Amori is an Associate Professor and researcher in the Department of Psychology at the University of British Columbia. She focuses on the impact of digital communication on teenage relationships, and has found that teen relationships, overall, remain rich and healthy. She helps parents and educators assist their children with peer relationships and peer issues.

What are the most common mistakes adults make when trying to communicate with teens about technology? Amori answers that parents sometimes assume that all online and social communication is negative. Parents often ask their children questions for the purpose of finding out what they are doing online. “This attitude,” she says, “will lead to some teens shutting down and refusing to talk.”

Delve into your teenager’s online world with Amori Mikami and learn how to help your kids safely and responsibly navigate social media and living in an age of constant connectivity. Make sure you register for Heart Mind 2015: Human Connection in a Digital World!