THE INFLUENCE OF CHILDREN AND TEENAGERS ON SOCIAL MEDIA: YOUNG INFLUENCERS AND THE IMPACT AMONG PEERS

This study critically analyzes how the media performance of children affects the socialization of their peers, emphasizing processes of identification, admiration, and imitation.The overall objective is to examine the ability of child influencers to shape the attitudes, consumption, and values of other children and adolescents, questioning both the potential benefits and the ethical consequences associated with early commercial exploitation.The proposed methodology is a qualitative-descriptive approach, based on an interdisciplinary literature review (communication, psychology, education, sociology) and documentary analysis of reports such as TIC Kids Online Brasil 2023.The results reveal that 95% of Brazilian children between the ages of 9 and 17 are connected to the internet and 88% have active profiles on social networks, where child influencers operate through sophisticated native marketing strategies that mask the commercial nature of their messages.The research highlights risks associated with early influence, including early access to inappropriate products (the "Sephora Kids" phenomenon), aesthetic pressure with a 6.57fold increase in body dissatisfaction, and psychosocial consequences such as anxiety and depression.The study highlighted important regulatory gaps, contrasting the Brazilian experience with international regulatory frameworks such as the 2020 French law on the commercial exploitation of children's images.It concludes that digital balance and healthy development require a multi-pronged protection agenda, including interministerial public policies, media education in school curricula, mandatory trust funds, platform accountability, and specialized psychological support.The transition from an economy of child exploitation to an ecology of responsible influence requires robust regulation, parental co-responsibility, and broad digital literacy.