As Instagram moves to improve its detection tools to stop teens lying about their age in the app, Pinterest is taking another step in a similar direction, by adding new prompts that will warn teen users (aged 13 to 17) about opening the app during typical school hours.
As you can see in this example, Pinterest is testing out new prompts that’ll urge teen users to shut the app down till after school if they open it between 8am and 3pm on weekdays.
As explained by Pinterest:
“This experiment will reach millions of their users across the US and Canada, and learnings will help better inform our teams as they continue to build a positive and inspirational platform for young people.”
Of course, teens can just press that big “X” at the top left of the main image to shut the prompt down, and go back to what they were doing. But the test aligns with Pinterest’s more positive approach to shifting user behavior, and ideally, it’ll have some impact on reducing disruptive Pinterest usage.
On another front, Pinterest is also working with the International Society for Technology in Education (ITSE) on a new program to develop “Digital Innovation Wellbeing Task Forces” in 12 school districts.
“The initiative responds to the urgent need to teach digital citizenship amidst predominantly ‘device management’ approaches that prioritize limiting student tech access over teaching healthy tech use. While 98% of educators say teaching digital citizenship should be a priority in their school, only 36% say it is actually being prioritized, according to data from ISTE+ASCD.”
I mean, Pinterest’s own new in-app prompts would also fall under “device management,” but the concept here is that Pinterest will work with ISTE on new programs to develop better online and device usage habits.
Finally, Pinterest has also endorsed proposed legislation in Texas which aims to address the issue of students being distracted by their smartphones in the classroom.
The proposed bill essentially outlaws the use of mobile devices by students “during instructional time,” and would require teachers to “designate a secure, out-of-sight area for the storage of personal wireless communication devices” during said periods.
All three measures align with Pinterest’s broader effort to encourage more mindful app usage, which educates users, while also setting healthy boundaries around usage time.
And supporting what are effectively usage bans is a significant step for a social app, so it’s noteworthy that Pinterest is endorsing new approaches that, if anything, will hurt its performance stats.
Which you could possibly dismiss to some degree, given that Pinterest isn’t as popular with youngsters as other social apps. But then again, Pinterest says that Gen Z users now make up 40% of its audience, so these in-app nudges and (potentially) official restrictions will, presumably, have a notable impact.
But Pinterest is looking to take the right path, as opposed to what’s best for business. Which seems somewhat noble, and a positive move either way.
