Gen Z grew up with social media, yet many now want restrictions

Gen Z is often described as the generation that grew up online, shaped by smartphones, social media and always-on digital life. Yet in Malaysia, many of these same young adults are now among the strongest supporters of keeping children off social platforms altogether.

According to an Ipsos study released earlier this month, 81% of Malaysian Gen Z respondents agreed that children under 14 should be barred from using social media both during and outside school hours. That was up sharply from 67% in 2025, representing the steepest increase among the generations surveyed.

Overall Malaysian support also climbed, from 72% last year to 83% this year. Gen X recorded the highest backing at 86%, while 85% of millennials also supported an under-14 restriction.

The Gen Z figure stands out because these are young adults who came of age with social media already embedded in everyday life. The respondents were reflecting on their own digital upbringing rather than speaking as the children who would be directly affected by such restrictions.

Ipsos suggests that first-hand experience may partly explain the shift: the generation that grew up with social media appears to understand its downsides and recognise newer risks, including AI-generated deepfakes and misinformation.

The findings come from an online survey of 501 Malaysian adults conducted between June 19 and July 3, including 207 Gen Z respondents. As with any subgroup result, the Gen Z figure should be read with some caution because smaller samples carry wider margins of error.

Malaysia is not alone

Malaysia’s views are part of a wider shift. According to Ipsos, 73% of respondents across 31 countries supported banning social media for children under 14, while Malaysia ranked second behind Indonesia, where support reached 90%.

Ipsos’s 2025 Education Monitor had already found that 72% of Malaysians backed an under-14 social media ban, compared with a global average of 71%. What appears to be changing is how willing adults are to support firm age limits rather than rely only on parental supervision or platform settings.

The latest debate sits against a backdrop of broader concern about children’s exposure to harmful online material. Ipsos cites Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission data indicating that 70% of Malaysian teenagers have encountered harmful online material.

These concerns include exploitative material, misinformation and increasingly convincing synthetic content. The spread of AI-generated images and videos has added another layer of difficulty for younger users trying to judge what is authentic.

Malaysia has also moved towards tighter online-safety rules, with major platforms expected to implement stronger age-verification and safety measures.

Restrictions alone may not be enough

Ipsos cautions that age-based restrictions cannot solve every problem: parents, educators and other trusted adults still have an important role in helping children understand online risks and use technology responsibly.

There is also the practical question of enforcement. Age verification can create concerns around privacy and accuracy, while determined younger users may still try to get around restrictions.

What makes the latest survey interesting is not simply that Malaysians support tighter controls, but that backing has grown so strongly among the generation most closely associated with social media itself.

For many Gen Z adults, the argument may be less about rejecting technology than recognising what constant connectivity can bring with it.

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