Have you seen the new Netflix series ‘Adolescence’? If not, you should. 

Not only is it gripping television, but it also raises some concerning topics of ‘what does it mean to be a man’ for our youth growing up in a world of intergenerational trauma, toxic masculinity and social media.

The show is about a 13-year-old boy who allegedly murders a female classmate. He strongly denies the claims, and his innocent looking face and stature make us want to believe him, though there is video evidence to the contrary.

How does this happen? How does a young innocent child become an anti-social killer? The show touches on themes of online bullying – using codes of emoji’s most adults would never recognise, and the disturbing trend of males preying on vulnerable females ‘I thought I’d ask her out when she was feeling down, that way she’d be more likely to say yes’. These behaviours are often rooted in toxic masculinity and a sense of entitlement, which can be exacerbated by social media.

What I’d like to explore more is the terrifying combination of – what if our boys are brought up by males who show control, violence and disrespect to the females in their lives AND are bombarded by social media posts of misogyny, dominance, male entitlement and a call to arms to ‘keep women in their place’. It is not uncommon for kids in out-of-home care to come from backgrounds of violence and trauma, and where this has occurred for more than one generation. We know that this can lead to an expression of physical, emotional and sexual violence in our young people. Imagine their poor developing brains, trying to make sense of the safe new homes we provide for them, only to have those messages of power and control reinforced every time they look at their phones.