We now know that tablets, phones and video games are a form of digital drug, and that their addictive effect acts on the cerebral cortex – executive function and impulse control – in the same way as cocaine, by raising dopamine levels (the pleasure neurotransmitter). Screens have been called “electronic cocaine” (Whibrow, P.; UCLA), “digital heroin” (Chinese researchers) and “digital pharmakeia” (Greek for drug; US Navy).
Why are parents, designers and engineers the most cautious? Why was Steve Jobs a notoriously low-tech dad? Why do Silicon Valley executives and engineers enroll their children in non-technological Waldorf schools? Why did Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page go to technology-free Montessori schools as did Amazon creator Jeff Bezos and Wikipedia founder Jimmy?
Exposure to these devices causes changes in:
Clinical studies on adolescents detail that they have found it easier to treat drug addiction than digital addiction, video games or networks. Children aged 8 to 10 spend 8 hours a day with various digital media while adolescents spend 11 hours in front of screens. One in three children are using tablets or smartphones before they can speak (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2013). It is not an easy task in our current technology-filled society where screens are omnipresent. A person can live without drugs or alcohol but digital temptations are everywhere.
What do we do as parents and from home?
The main key is prevention, preventing your 4, 5 or 8 year old child from getting hooked on screens. That means Lego instead of Minecraft; Books instead of iPads; Nature and sports instead of TV, until they are at least 10 years old (even up to 12).
Avoid the use of electronic devices at home as much as possible, whenever you are with the family: establish a cell phone park for the whole family, eat with your children without any electronic devices on the table, keep them silent, avoid using them as digital babysitters . Talk to your children without devices in your hand, remember: “most children hear what you say, some even do what you say, but all children do what you do.”
It is very possible, depending on the level of exposure your children are in, that they will feel disoriented, bored, rusty and feel alone and without resources to connect to real life experiences. We as adults are also suffering from this situation and we must, together, recover creative activities to reconnect family relationships.
While a child is using a tablet or watching TV, they are not doing other activities they need for their development. In children under two, research shows the brain needs direct interaction with real people to develop language and other cognitive, social and emotional skills. From the age of two, the main negative effect of technology is that it takes time away from physical exercise and hands-on activities, on top of everything described above about attention and motivation.
How to make responsible use of technologies?
On the other hand, we cannot deny that we are witnessing a social change with new technologies, so to prevent this excessive use, children and adolescents can be provided with tools to make good use of them.
Play with them and share what motivates them, share emotions, learn together and get to know each other better. Place devices in the common space to avoid isolation and informally observe their behavior. Inviting friends to play is always a better option to find out how they relate. Schedule usage times, which involves a balance between all dynamics, always determining its end before starting so that it is easier to achieve commitment. Talk about the Internet in a critical and reflective way, taking into account its pros and cons. Find out about content limiting programs. Always suggest that they do other leisure activities that motivate them.
Cristina Oroz Bajo
