Paper Type
Complete
Paper Number
PACIS2026-1508
Description
To mitigate youth online harms, governments are increasingly considering social media age-restrictions. While IS research documents unintended consequences post-implementation, policy design often fails to utilize the theoretical tools required to recognize and anticipate these future outcomes. This study examines Australia’s proposed Social Media Minimum Age (SMMA) policy by synthesizing Merton’s (1936) framework with a socio-technical systems (STS) lens. Through mixed inductive–deductive coding of stakeholder submissions to a parliamentary inquiry, this study identifies governance tensions where regulatory intent clashes with social expectations and technical infrastructures. The findings explain how regulatory goals become complex challenges, specifically identifying "ecosystem-level spillover effects" in which users circumvent restrictions and migrate to less-regulated spaces. We introduce cross-platform adaptation/migration as a novel socio-technical challenge representing the mismatch between platform-bound regulation and fluid digital behaviors. This underrepresented phenomenon highlights the need for "ecosystem-aware" governance and research on the viability of age gates within a globally interconnected, adaptive landscape.
Recommended Citation
Nallaperuma, Kaushalya; Gamachchi, Anagi; Kaluarachchi, Chintha Dammi; Nagahawatta, Ruwan; and Wickramatunga, Chandima Asith, "Anticipating Unintended Consequences: Australia’s Social Media Minimum Age-Restriction" (2026). PACIS 2026 Proceedings. 6.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/pacis2026/isdesign_tam/isdesign_tam/6
Anticipating Unintended Consequences: Australia’s Social Media Minimum Age-Restriction
To mitigate youth online harms, governments are increasingly considering social media age-restrictions. While IS research documents unintended consequences post-implementation, policy design often fails to utilize the theoretical tools required to recognize and anticipate these future outcomes. This study examines Australia’s proposed Social Media Minimum Age (SMMA) policy by synthesizing Merton’s (1936) framework with a socio-technical systems (STS) lens. Through mixed inductive–deductive coding of stakeholder submissions to a parliamentary inquiry, this study identifies governance tensions where regulatory intent clashes with social expectations and technical infrastructures. The findings explain how regulatory goals become complex challenges, specifically identifying "ecosystem-level spillover effects" in which users circumvent restrictions and migrate to less-regulated spaces. We introduce cross-platform adaptation/migration as a novel socio-technical challenge representing the mismatch between platform-bound regulation and fluid digital behaviors. This underrepresented phenomenon highlights the need for "ecosystem-aware" governance and research on the viability of age gates within a globally interconnected, adaptive landscape.
Comments
13-Design