1 in 10 adolescents have experienced room cafes… The viewership of adult films is on the decline

1 in 10 adolescents have visited room cafes, which are establishments banned for adolescent access and employment, and more than 1 in 4 have watched adult films in the past year.

This was revealed in the '2024 Youth Media Use and Harmful Environment Survey' released by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family on the 1st.

The survey was conducted with 15,053 students from upper-grade elementary schools (4th to 6th grades) and middle and high schools nationwide.

The Korea Youth Policy Institute and Korea Research conducted this web-based online survey from September 9 to November 8 last year.

According to the results, the most widely used media among adolescents in the past year was 'short-form (short video) content' (94.2% – multiple answers allowed). Following that, 'internet/mobile messengers' (92.6%), 'internet personal broadcasting and video sites' (91.1%), and 'TV broadcasts' (89.7%) were the next most popular.

Notably, the usage rate of adult films decreased to 26.5%, a drop of 21.0 percentage points compared to the survey conducted two years ago (47.5%).

During the same period, the usage rate of adult publications also significantly decreased from 24.1% to 11.2%.

The rate of alcohol consumption in the past month among middle and high school students decreased from 13.7% to 12.1%, while the smoking experience rate dropped from 4.2% to 2.4%.

The rates for directly purchasing alcohol and cigarettes in the past month were recorded at 1.3% and 1.2%, respectively.

Among adolescent smokers, the most commonly used type of tobacco was regular cigarettes (84.0%), but the usage rates of liquid e-cigarettes (68.5%) and heated tobacco products (34.6%) were also significantly high.

The experience of using medical narcotic analgesics like fentanyl and oxycodone or appetite suppressants was notably low at 0.3%.

Additionally, in a recent survey regarding access to establishments prohibited for adolescent entry and employment in the past year, room cafes had the highest incidence at 12.6%. This was followed by multi-room facilities (4.4%) and video/DVD rooms (2.2%).

The experience rate of part-time employment among adolescents was recorded at 6.2%.

In terms of payment methods, the proportion of 'monthly salary' payment increased significantly (10.0% to 31.1%), while 'hourly wage' payments decreased (71.3% to 41.9%).

Among adolescents with part-time experiences, the rate of 'lack of a written employment contract' decreased from 49.4% to 36.4%.

The rate of violence victimization among adolescents in the past year was 22.6%, indicating that more than 1 in 5 had experienced violence. Among the types of victimization, 'verbal violence' (offline 16.0%, online 9.1%) was the highest.

The rate of sexual violence victimization was 5.2%, with the type being 'harassment through words, gestures, or body language' (2.7%) being the most prevalent.

The primary perpetrators of violence (62.1%) and sexual violence (60.0%) were most frequently individuals from the same school.

Dr. Kim Ji-kyung explained, "The types of violence victimization have generally increased, and as awareness of violence issues and prevention education spreads, the sensitivity to violence, or the understanding that 'this is violence,' has increased overall."

Image sources: Reference images for understanding the article / gettyimagesbank, '2024 Youth Media Use and Harmful Environment Survey' infographic / provided by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, a room cafe in Seoul / captured from Channel A News.