(ECNS) -- More than 36 percent of people think children shouldn't be using the Internet and social networking sites at a younger age for fear they are a bad influence, a survey by China Youth Daily found.
In the survey, 81.4 percent of respondents said they see more and more children online and familiar with various social networking apps, such as QQ, WeChat and Weibo, and their average age tends to be decreasing.
The mobile messaging app WeChat and instant messaging software QQ, both products of Internet giant Tencent, are most popular among junior users, at 82.4 percent and 75.6 percent respectively.
Some children also use Weibo (25.3 percent), video streaming apps (24.8 percent), and forums (15.8 percent), according to the survey.
The respondents said children are most interested in three kinds of content – entertainment information (56.9 percent), games (56.5 percent) and updates of friends, relatives or classmates (56.4 percent).
In the survey, 7.5 percent said they were aware of children viewing pornographic and violent content.
Attitudes towards children's use of the Internet is mixed. More than 36 percent are against, 28.7 percent are supportive, and 34.7 percent are neutral.
Although 55 percent of respondents disagreed with the publication of personal information and pictures online by children, more than 73 percent said they find parents like to disclose their children's photos.
Yu Xiaojie, an English teacher at a primary school in Shaoxing City, East China's Zhejiang Province, said almost every class for senior graders has an online community on QQ or WeChat.
A six-grader in Baoding City, Hebei Province, said she likes chatting with her classmates and discussing homework with them online.
Some 80 percent thought parents should be careful while using social networking programs in front of their children.
Fei Jinhua, whose daughter is a first-year middle school student in Chengdu in Sichuan Province, said she and her husband usually read books when their child is at home.
A total of 2,001 respondents completed the survey, with 73.1 percent being parents.
