Negative influence of technology on children

In the 90s, children brought up television, and even more advanced technological solutions are struggling for the attention of modern kids and schoolchildren. Social networks, video games, messengers and smartphones - they all affect the development of the younger generation to one degree or another.

Senior schoolchildren and students are able to express priorities and control their screen time, which cannot be said about preschoolers: they still do not know anything about the importance of the rational use of gadgets (they and the words such unfamiliar). But they, with hunt, copy the behavior of parents, stretch to smartphones and tablets, are not shy to ask for expensive devices as a gift.

On the one hand, the kid, enthusiastically playing in itself (even if the tablet even in the tablet) is a dream of any parent. But on the other, unwittingly, and the thought slip: is it useful to close communication with technologies at a young age? And if not, how serious will the consequences?

Gadgets, high technologies and children

The first skills of using personal electronics Children are very early. And we must admit that these skills in the modern world are extremely necessary. Without them, it will not be possible to prepare homework, find a lesson in the soul, with benefit to spend your free time.

parents who have a child mastered a smartphone or a computer, finally can afford to calmly drink a cup of coffee while their child is tormented by endless questions voice assistant or something creating something in Minecraft.

Such a bored kid phone - not the most successful way to gain calm. But do not rush to scold yourself: very many adults do that. And if you do this only from time to time, the bad habit will not have time to form. You can talk about these issues if the child has unlimited access to gadgets and the Internet, and close people do not seek to diversify his life with other classes. With this situation, the child easily acquires a bunch of health problems, psyche and communication. About them and talk.

1. Unstable

The human brain has astounding capabilities. Million gigabyte data is placed in it! But the world around the world is still much wider.

News, video, music and other sources of information around the clock bombard our brain, forcing it to rebuild to the early search for the most interesting. The headlines flashed before their eyes, the tracks in the playlist switch, without having to do even until the middle - spend time to study everything in a row it became unprofitable. From this lifestyle, the period of the concentration of attention in man has been shortened. To keep the audience, online content also became shorter and easier for perception.

Fast Content Changes is also bad. Social networks, televisions and Internet make us instantly switch between different, sometimes not related to each other with events. The children's brain, which is at the stage of rapid development, is forced to be in multitasking mode to such an extent that sometimes it is difficult for him to concentrate on one thought or activity. Such a child is in a state of chronic overload. He is not able to quietly sit for 45 minutes of the lesson, read two pages of the text or talk to talk, how was the day. His thinking clip: It perceives only bright fragment images.

In 2002, the Medical Journal of Pediatrics conducted a study on the influence of the TV and video games on the behavior of children. It took part 1,300 Americans aged from 6 to 12 years. With the average duration of the screen time, over 4 hours from most of them, teachers celebrated problems with the concentration of attention. Research for 2007 confirmed these conclusions and suggested that the effect remains in the long run.

2. Health problems

Most often consoles, televisions and phones scold for provoking a "bouquet" of diseases. The root of health problems lies in the absence of physical activity: most of the day, children spend in a sitting position. Many of the packs, candy and other unhealthy foods, which also leads to weight gains.

Children's obesity is serious, but far from the only problem in which the gadgets are to blame. There is still:

• The thumb tendiment (tendon inflammation) due to the passion of video games or a long set of text;
• Overvoltage of the eyes due to long viewing of bright screens from close distance;
• Bad posture due to improper body position;
• hearing impairment due to excessive use of high volume headphones;
• Pain in the neck due to the constant tilt of the head forward;
• Headaches.

This list could be continued, but then the picture will become completely gloomy.

3. Detergence of sleep quality

In the modern world, children are open around the clock access to the media content. They can easily spend the night for feeding or watching the series instead of sleeping. And it is bad, because for normal development, children require significantly more sleep than adults.

Study of the National Institute for Children's Health and Human Development (USA) showed that the use of electronic media before bedtime is poorly reflected in the quality of child sleep. This conclusion confirms Jama Pediatrics Medical Journal. Without receiving enough sleep sleep, the child suffers from the inability to concentrate all day. Contrary to constant drowsiness to fall asleep him becomes harder, and sleep brings less rest. It turns out a vicious circle.

4. Behavior and emotional problems

Today it became fashionable to blame social networks in all sins of young people: they say, prohibit Would, and the nation will be healthier. Not so simple. The benefits of them are, but harm is a lot.

The social network exacerbate the uncertainty in their forces. Children tend to copy the behavior of those who are impressive - online friends, kinheroev, popular bloggers. Later, they face disappointment when in real life it is impossible to repeat what they see on the Internet: the surrounding did not appreciate the joke, the trick failed, etc. If the child is not too confident in herself and Vedod, his self-esteem suffers.

As for the etching (now it is called bulling), this theme is serious and for many painful. It did not give rise to the Internet. School trauma existed long before the appearance of the Internet, Titock and Instagram. And even when the Internet firmly entered our life, today's adults did not decide to admit that in school years were victims of bullying.

The causes of the etching have not changed. Children continue to mock each other due to physical characteristics, training failures, differences in hobbies, family problems. Only now it happens not only in real life, but also online, where the victim is around the clock as on the palm.

Statistics are terrible. In anonymous polls, every third teenager admits that he was or is a victim of cyberbulling. A study published in Sage journal has shown that in children using social networks on a permanent basis, problems with mental state occur. Another study published in the International Journal of Children's Health and Human Development showed that out of 1,500 children who use the Internet for more than 3 hours a day, depression is diagnosed with 30%.

5. Weak Social Skills

Permanent communication through electronic devices Thrust the development of skills that are purchased during personal interaction between people.

An important social skills include:

• The ability to observe the order in the conversation;
• reading facial expressions and its use;
• Relevant visual contact;
• Changing the voosen depending on the age and social position of the interlocutor.

All of them are exhausted solely with personal communication with other people, otherwise it is in no way.

Through the Internet, children easily adopt aggressive behavior, get used to intimidation and rudeness, begin to perceive such relationships as the norm. The study published in the BMC Public Health magazine shows that the more time the children are spent in front of the screens, the weaker their real communication skills.

6. Early acquaintance with adult content and security issues

Perhaps the most terrible nightmare of parents is that the children will come across the Internet on Frank materials. Yes, sooner or later it will happen if access to the network is not limited to the gadgets. Sites with 18+ materials do not have serious mechanisms for checking the age of users. This means that any child can visit a similar site and explore all its sections.

This is only one problem. There are weights of the stories when the attackers are manipulated through the Internet by children, forcing them to send the frank Self. These same people can use your children as a source of information on family resources and details of personal life.

How to prevent all these troubles?

If you refer yourself to responsible parents, you already probably understand that high technologies in the life of children need to be limited. At the same time, as a reasonable person, you should understand that the hard prohibitions of the effect are not allowed, and the technologies must be present in the life of everyone and adult, and the child. We will have to act with the mind, in some places to show the smell.

1. Encourage physical activity and entertainment outside the home

Vibrant video games and TV shows are more interesting than many other activities, however, proper physical and mental development is impossible without sufficient exposure to the fresh air.

Physical activity burns calories well, reduces the risk of obesity, develops muscles, promotes self-confidence and good sleep. Team games develop social skills and a sense of subordination. That's how much good a couple of hours of playing with a ball in the yard will bring.

2. Limit Screen Time

A strict limit on gadget use will reduce the chances of eye strain, neck pain, and other health problems. Even a preschooler can be explained the 20-20-20 rule recommended by the American Optometric Association: 20 minutes of screen work, 20 second break to look into the distance at a distance of 20 feet (6 meters).

3. Enable parental control tools

Digital parenting tools fall into four categories.

• Content filters deny access to online information according to age rating.
• Time limits block applications and gadget functions by timer. They are available on both iPhone and Android.
• Computer management tools are designed to run allowed programs and block unwanted ones.
• Monitoring tools are designed to check the location and track activity on children's devices.

The child most likely will not understand strict prohibitions. Therefore, another task falls on your shoulders: to clearly explain to your son or daughter what dangers lurk on the Internet. Then the child will perceive the restrictions not as severity, but as a manifestation of care.

Smart kids can figure out how to bypass parental controls. Someone will borrow a tablet from a friend just to look at a banned site, and someone will learn how to remove security extensions from the browser. Technically savvy children will figure out how to connect a proxy, they will be able to reset the settings to factory settings.

4. Spend more time with your children

No advanced digital assistant can replace parental warmth. Adults are required to allocate time for communication with the child, sports activities and joint games, because these are the things that make a family a family.

Technology is here to stay, so we'll have to find the right balance so that all parties can enjoy their presence in our children's lives. Prioritize safety and wellbeing. Look for ways to use technology to develop skills, not mindlessly stare at a screen.