We all have smartphones - often even those that are just a few years old. This is understandable because parents want to have control over their children and at the same time have some time for themselves when the children are engaged in a game or a story. However, as many studies show, the virtual world and the amount of time we spend online have a negative impact on family dynamics .
A study conducted by Kaspersky and iconkids & Youth shows that as many as 23% of parents admit that their children gain most of their knowledge about the world from the Internet . They prefer to spend time on the Internet, looking for answers to their questions, rather than talking to their parents. The same parents also believe that frequent immersion in the virtual world isolates them from their children and causes tension. And families that often use new technologies (which have become a permanent part of everyday life) rarely spend time together and sit down to eat meals together less often. You can read about why shared meals are so important in this article .
Other conclusions from the above-mentioned study include:
Two thirds of Poles regularly use the Internet, according to the CBOS study "Current problems and events (2017). When the Children Are Our Foundation (then called Nobody's Children) conducted research in 2015, it turned out that every third year-old child had experience with a mobile device . Every fourth child aged 3-4 has their own mobile phone (in the group of 6-year-olds this number is even higher - 40%). Almost half of parents use mobile devices as a kind of reward for their child.
In an interview with the portal warny.online, Dr. Maciej Dębski, president of the Dbam o Moje Z@sięg Foundation, said: "The web and the world of digital media will increasingly take over our lives." At the same time, he added that "it depends only on us how much we allow new technologies to dominate our lives and real bonds and interpersonal relations, such as face-to-face . "
What can be done? It's wise to limit your online life and set clear rules so that you can find time during the day to be here and now, without phones. Both morning and evening rituals should take place in a phone-free zone , as should meals. You can create a place at home where all household members put their phones away. You can turn off notifications so that your quiet evening with your family is not interrupted by the sound of new messages on Facebook or WhatsApp.
What is particularly important is the fact that children learn by observing adults . It is difficult to expect a child to willingly give up time with a phone or tablet if he sees that his mother or father does not part with the phone . Especially since most of the coverage takes place on social media. As the president of the Mam Z@sięg Foundation said, "parents' duty is to build the entire real world , which would be a counterweight to the digital world, so we should constantly think about how to build an alternative to the digital world, which will spread more and more, which will more and more colorful, including children in its space.
If we want our household members to spend more time "in real life", we need to offer them an attractive alternative . These may include, for example, board games, sports trips, trips, cooking together, walks around interesting places or other activities depending on interests and preferences.
Bibliography: “The Internet as a Source of Family Tension,” July 13, 2016, kids.kaspersky.com. A study commissioned by the Empowering Children Foundation (then Nobody's Children Foundation) was conducted by Millward Brown SA in 2015 on a nationwide sample of parents of children aged 6 months to 6.5 years (N=1011). health.pap.pl. Paula Sikora-Malinowska, "The Internet can be a source of conflict and separation in the family", April 18, 2019, warny.online.
Bibliography:
Napisała: Anna Stachowiak
Journalist, editor. Mainly interested in social and health issues. Publishes in the weekly " Przegląd ". A lover of active recreation, a healthy lifestyle, testing theories in practice and delving deeper into the topic. Privately, she is the mother of a rebellious 3-year-old and a yoga adept.
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