British youngsters prefer online advice to parents

LONDON (Reuters Life!) - Young people in Britain turn to the internet to look for help with personal problems rather than seek advice from their parents or friends, according to a survey released on Thursday.

Nine-tenths of the 1,000 under 25s told the survey for national free helpline Get Connected that they had used the Web to search for help in solving a personal problem.

Only one third said they would turn to their mother to discuss a problem, while just one in 20 would speak to their father. Half said they would be likely to speak to a friend.

The poll, carried out by Maximiles Surveys also showed that more than half of young people who turned to the internet to search for help with a problem said that the online information actually made them more worried than they were before.

"As a society we have become increasingly reliant on the internet as a first point of reference for a lot of information, and it is crucial that we make Britain's young people aware of exactly where they can turn to for dependable information and support," said Andrew McKnight, Chairman of the Board of Trustees for Get Connected.

(Reporting by Valle Aviles Pinedo; Editing by Steve Addison and Paul Casciato)