Last updated: May 23rd 2010.

This document is a part of the TeenHelp Terms of Service. For other information governing the usage of services provided by TeenHelp, please click here.

This document describes how users should behave and the disciplinary procedures that will be used to deal with violations of this Code.

Equal Opportunities Statement

TeenHelp provides an equal opportunity service. All users will be treated equally regardless of their sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, race, ethnic background, culture, disability, religion, political views, lifestyle or any other reason.

Posting Guidelines

Below is a series of site-wide posting guidelines that are in force on TeenHelp. Failure to follow these guidelines may result in disciplinary action, which may include content removal or account suspension, as appropriate:

• All users should be treated with respect at all times, regardless of any negative feelings or whether or not provocation occurred. Hateful descriptions or images will not be tolerated anywhere on TeenHelp.
• Posts should not be made solely in order to convince other users to visit another website or to buy a product. This includes other areas within TeenHelp itself, such as asking users to visit a specific thread.
  • In addition to this users may not use links to personal blogs or journals as the sole content of posts. Instead, users should copy and paste the relevant entries to TeenHelp so that fellow users do not need to go off-site in order to offer advice.
• A thread should only be posted once, in the most appropriate forum for the subject. If a thread fits into several sections it should not be reposted in all of them.
• If you wish to post updates to an ongoing discussion, post them in your original thread rather than creating several different threads.
• All posts within a thread should be related to either the original or a previous post in that thread. Any posts not directly associated with the intended topic of discussion are considered off-topic and should not be posted.
• Posts should not be made in order to bring a thread higher up on the forum listing (bumping).
• A reasonable attempt should be made by the user to read the content of others before replying to a thread. The user should avoid repeating the same information as others if their content does not add anything new. Repeated information may be removed at the discretion of the Moderation.
• A reasonable attempt should be made by the user to use the search feature of the Support Forums before asking a question, as their question may have previously been answered.
• Users must not submit the content of others and claim this content as their own (plagiarism). All borrowed content should be fully referenced to the authors or copyright holders.
• Any medical claims posted should be supported by a reputable external reference. Unsupported information may be removed at the discretion of the Moderation. This is in order to protect TeenHelp’s users from the possibility of inaccurate medical advice.
• False information should not be submitted to TeenHelp, including the user profiles. As the Privacy Policy states, the majority of information requested is entirely optional, so if you do not wish to supply the information the fields should be left blank, rather than false information being submitted. Under no circumstance should users make up entirely false stories about themselves in requests for help.
• Users should not use TeenHelp to break the law in anyway, or to assist or encourage other users to break the law.
• The Mature and Sensitive Content Policy and Advertisement Policy, outlined below, should be followed.

In addition to these guidelines, many forums have specific rules appropriate just to themselves. These rules can be found via a link at the top of the forum the user is in. These rules should also be followed.

Content that violates these Posting Guidelines will be edited or removed by the TeenHelp Moderation team.

Mature and Sensitive Content Policy

Users should be aware that content they feel is suitable may not always be okay with other users. Where possible, consideration to this should be given before submitting content to TeenHelp. All content posted on TeenHelp should be suitable to be viewed by an audience as young as thirteen (PG-13). Users should not post content anywhere on TeenHelp that may be upsetting beyond what other users may normally expect to encounter in their day-to-day lives. In particular, 'triggering' content, which is defined as any content that might cause a user to want to perform unhealthy or dangerous behaviours, should not be posted on TeenHelp. Such inappropriate content might include, but is not limited to, explicit descriptions or images of sex, self-mutilation or violence, substance use, 'food diaries', or any indications of body weight (including actual weights, BMIs, clothing sizes or 'tickers' that measure weight loss). Where posts are only minimally triggering, they should be marked as such by applying an appropriate triggering prefix while creating the thread. Where content is severely triggering, it should not be posted at all.

Advertisement Policy

Any links posted anywhere on TeenHelp should follow the guidelines posted below:

• No sites that could be considered to be competitors of TeenHelp (with exception to those listed on the TeenHelp Resources page). Most websites that contain bulletin board software are considered competitors of TeenHelp.
• No sites that violate any part of these Terms of Service.
• No sites that promote or endorse illegal or dangerous behaviour.
• Sites that are large and well-known are not considered to contravene the Advertisement Policy. Which sites are well-known is decided by the Administration.
• Users may post a single link to a personal website within their user profile or within their signature; this should not be posted repeatedly over TeenHelp, however.

Any sites not covered by the Advertisement Policy should be checked with a TeenHelp Administrator prior to being posted on TeenHelp.

TeenHelp takes part in a reciprocal link exchange scheme. If you would like your website to be displayed on the Resources page and be allowed for it to be posted on TeenHelp, and would be willing to allow the same on your site, then please email contact [at] teenhelp.org.

Research and data collection

Users should not use TeenHelp to conduct research intended for any form of publication whatsoever without explicit approval of an Administrator. Users wishing to conduct research will be expected to explain their consideration of the following before approval to conduct research will be granted:

• Confidentiality - What level of anonymity is being afforded to participants? Names, contact details, and other information that could be used to identify a person should not be published. Some detailed personal stories may also provide enough information to potentially identify a person, and where possible should not be published, at least not in their full, original form.
• Purpose - What type of publication is the information intended for and how will the information be used? Is the publication being used to forward a particular political or religious ideology? Could the nature of the publication inadvertently harm participants? TeenHelp may wish to independently verify this information by contacting a publishing company or academic department to ensure that the data is being used legitimately.
• Other ethical considerations - Which code of ethics, if any, does the research subscribe to?

Social Groups rules

Below are a series of rules that should be followed when creating and participating in Social Groups.

• All Social Groups should follow the Terms of Service and other forum rules. Especially, Groups should not be created to promote dangerous or illegal behaviour, and should not be created to encourage users to use a particular site or product.
• Please search for existing Social Groups before creating new ones. Duplicated or very similar Groups may be deleted.

Regarding deceased users

In the rare and unfortunate event that a TeenHelp user is confirmed to be deceased, the following guidelines will be used:

• A member of the Administration should be contacted privately regarding the event. Impromptu announcements should not be made in the Forums. Deaths will be verified before a public announcement is endorsed by TeenHelp.
• A memorial thread will be made by an Administrator in the General forum to inform the wider population of TeenHelp of what has happened. The thread will be closed within two weeks of the event.
• Memorial avatars, signatures and Social Groups are considered upsetting, and are prohibited under the Mature and Sensitive Content Policy; such images and messages should be limited to the more private user profile instead.
• Memorial articles may be published in TeenHelp's magazine, Avatar, and mention of the departed users may be included on TeenHelp's memorial page.

Miscellaneous rules

• Users may not represent or act on behalf of TeenHelp in any context without the permission of the Administration. Any profiles, pages or groups that represent TeenHelp on other sites should be created and maintained by a current member of the Administration. These pages may also be subject to the rest of these Terms of Service.
• Any attempt to exploit a site bug for any purpose whatsoever will be considered a malicious attack on TeenHelp and such users will be immediately blacklisted from the TeenHelp server.
• The majority of TeenHelp users are English-speaking and the majority of the site areas are targeted towards those who speak English. It is therefore strongly advised that users speak English on all areas of the site where possible.

Response to content violations

If the user sees content that violates TeenHelp's Terms of Service, the user has the responsibility to report this to the TeenHelp staff. Content violations in the Support Forums can be reported via a link at the top left of every forum post, which appears as a red square with an X in it. Content violations in other areas of TeenHelp (e.g. Chat Room, Blogs) should be reported directly to a member of the TeenHelp staff, most commonly via private messaging.

Under no circumstances should users reply to misbehavers on TeenHelp (known in the Forums as "feeding the trolls").

Discipline and account suspension

TeenHelp reserves the right to remove the user’s account, account privileges or content at any time, for any reason, at the full discretion of the Administration. This will mostly likely occur when the user violates these Terms of Service. Bans will usually only result after attempts to stop the user’s inappropriate behaviour; this might include requests from staff members for the user to stop, or the removal of posts from the Forums, among other actions. Bans will be issued when milder disciplinary actions have proven ineffective. An exception to this is for forum trolls, who will be banned immediately. If TeenHelp feels that any TeenHelp user poses a threat to the security, stability, or reputation of TeenHelp, or to the welfare of any TeenHelp user, TeenHelp will take direct and harsh action against such users.

TeenHelp uses an Infraction System on its Support Forums. This consists of a series of possible violations and points that are given based on the severity of the violation. Serious violations receive more points than minor violations. Some violations have points that expire, while other violations have points that will remain on your account. Any infractions you receive will be shown within your Support Forums User CP, and an automated private message will also be sent to you. Account suspension will occur when the user acquires thirty points at any given time. These bans do not expire; once the account has been banned, it will stay banned permanently. Reregistering after a permanent ban in order to evade your ban will result in another permanent ban.

Forum bans not issued by the automated Infraction System will likely be temporary; their length will vary at the discretion of the Moderation team. Bans from the TeenHelp Chat Room will be thirty days minimum, and will result appropriately at the discretion of the Moderation. See the Chat Room information page, here, for details of Chat Room rules and procedures.

Any bans issued may be disputed. To dispute a ban, click here to contact the Disputes Committee, who will be able to review the circumstances of a ban. (Alternatively, email contact [at] teenhelp.org.) If a ban is found to be unfair, it will be removed. In other circumstances, a ban may be reduced or other conditions may be negotiated in order to arrive at a fair agreement.

Permanent site bans lapse after six months. This means that after this time most banned users are able to return to TeenHelp if they are able to demonstrate that they have changed their behaviour and are willing to contribute positively to our community. Some users may have their bans extended, though, and this decision rests solely with the Disputes Committe. Users banned for serious offenses can usually assume that their ban will not lapse.