I listened to a wonder presentation today at The Faulk Center for Counseling. It was on Parenting in the Digital Age by Dr. Edan Alcalay, a Delray Beach Child and Adolescent Psychologist. The presentation covered a wide span of material from marketing geared towards children, the psychological effects of too much "screen time," as Dr. Alcalay calls it, and preventative factors.
It is obvious that technology is a significant and growing part of our culture. We have gone from a world of reading the newspaper to reading articles online; from sending a letter to sending a text message, and from having a conversation in person to chatting on Facebook or Skype with lol's and jk's. While it is amazing and extremely convenient, How much is too much?
Dr. Alcalay stated that according to research children below the age of 10 should not have more that 45 minutes of "screen time." From 11 to adulthood he claimed no more than two hours, not including school and work activities. Additionally, he stated that if you are on multiple devices and are multitasking that screen time is doubled. So, why is this a problem?
This is affecting children's abilities to pay attention, concentrate, convert information from short term to long term memory, as well as influencing their minds to get you to purchase that pillow pet or in adolescence, the newest iPhone. It also affects their social skills, familial and interpersonal relationships. The amount of screen time and content watched is correlated with increase in substance use/abuse in teenagers. It influences health behaviors as time spent in front of the TV is time that could be utilized to be active, find a hobby, or exercise a child's creativity. So, how can we prevent overuse of technology when it is apart of our everyday lives?
Dr. Alcalay suggests having scheduled family dinners. Studies show that children that have family dinners eat healthier, are less likely to be overweight, have better relationships with their parents, perform better academically and are less likely to partake in risky behaviors such as substance use, sexual activity, etc. On top of limiting use by putting a timer and decreasing background TV noise, other suggestions include making screen time an opportunity for family time as a scheduled event, have technology in common areas and not children's bedrooms, come up with alternative activities then using technology (i.e. game nights, arts and crafts, story time, etc.) , don't use screen time as reinforcement for desired behaviors (i.e. doing homework, chores, etc.) and lastly be aware of the types of TV programs, movies and video games your children are viewing their ratings of (G, PG, M, etc.).
Most importantly be a model for your children. They will ultimately learn what to do from you. This presentation was not only informative but made me reflect on my own "screen time," how I want to use technology, the effects I feel because of excess use and changes I want to make to better myself. On that note, here is a funny cartoon I Googled! (PSA this cartoon was placed for entertainment purposes as this is an informative and FUN blog, and should not be held against this writer in regards to the content mentioned above *in my fast reading off the side effects of a dangerous prescription drug voice*)
It is obvious that technology is a significant and growing part of our culture. We have gone from a world of reading the newspaper to reading articles online; from sending a letter to sending a text message, and from having a conversation in person to chatting on Facebook or Skype with lol's and jk's. While it is amazing and extremely convenient, How much is too much?
Dr. Alcalay stated that according to research children below the age of 10 should not have more that 45 minutes of "screen time." From 11 to adulthood he claimed no more than two hours, not including school and work activities. Additionally, he stated that if you are on multiple devices and are multitasking that screen time is doubled. So, why is this a problem?
This is affecting children's abilities to pay attention, concentrate, convert information from short term to long term memory, as well as influencing their minds to get you to purchase that pillow pet or in adolescence, the newest iPhone. It also affects their social skills, familial and interpersonal relationships. The amount of screen time and content watched is correlated with increase in substance use/abuse in teenagers. It influences health behaviors as time spent in front of the TV is time that could be utilized to be active, find a hobby, or exercise a child's creativity. So, how can we prevent overuse of technology when it is apart of our everyday lives?
Dr. Alcalay suggests having scheduled family dinners. Studies show that children that have family dinners eat healthier, are less likely to be overweight, have better relationships with their parents, perform better academically and are less likely to partake in risky behaviors such as substance use, sexual activity, etc. On top of limiting use by putting a timer and decreasing background TV noise, other suggestions include making screen time an opportunity for family time as a scheduled event, have technology in common areas and not children's bedrooms, come up with alternative activities then using technology (i.e. game nights, arts and crafts, story time, etc.) , don't use screen time as reinforcement for desired behaviors (i.e. doing homework, chores, etc.) and lastly be aware of the types of TV programs, movies and video games your children are viewing their ratings of (G, PG, M, etc.).
Most importantly be a model for your children. They will ultimately learn what to do from you. This presentation was not only informative but made me reflect on my own "screen time," how I want to use technology, the effects I feel because of excess use and changes I want to make to better myself. On that note, here is a funny cartoon I Googled! (PSA this cartoon was placed for entertainment purposes as this is an informative and FUN blog, and should not be held against this writer in regards to the content mentioned above *in my fast reading off the side effects of a dangerous prescription drug voice*)
Very astute and important observations. I remember as a kid my folks didn't let me watch much tv, only family movie nights once a week. We played board games, talked, cooked, and ate together instead. I used to be jealous of my classmates when they talked about their favorite tv shows, which I had never seen. But now I look back and I am glad my folks had the wisdom to restrict my TV exposure. And I plan to do the same if I have kids someday.
ReplyDeleteThis problem also has a parallel to adults at work these days. You can go into offices with hundreds of people sitting in silence, save for the sound of keyboards clicking, not communicating to each other in person, not even acknowledging their each others existence, not even eating lunch together (one of the most basic human necessities), but instead staring blankly at a screen all day long long in a seated position. The human mind wasn't meant to operate that way and neither was the body. This needs to be addressed otherwise it is leading to serious mental, emotional, and physical health issues.
- Kahlil