Former Teacher Warns Of An Upcoming Rift In Society Between Kids Raised Without Screens And Those Who Were Raised By Screens
The differences between the two groups have become glaringly obvious and will only continue to grow.
Iuliia Shcherbakova | Shutterstock Screen time warnings for kids are nothing new. Experts and researchers are not divided on the issue. Technology and society have other opinions, however. The fact of the matter is that screens are an integral part of life nowadays, and there needs to be a balance between healthy and unhealthy use. There's no way around it.
Still, with technology moving so quickly and parenting trends changing rapidly, kids seem to fall into two distinct camps: those raised with screens and those raised without.
Former teacher Mike Bonitatibus warned of a division between people who were raised with unfiltered internet access and those who consumed online content in moderation.
A rift in society is forming between kids raised without screens and those who were raised by screens.
Bonitatibus stated those who were raised using the internet in moderation would struggle to deal with those who grew up with no restrictions on their screen usage.
"We are seeing the negative effects of kids who are being raised on iPads, and one of the biggest issues coming from it is the complete inability to control and understand your emotions at all," he said.
He also mentioned struggling with impulse control, focus, and relationships, as well as feelings of narcissism, amongst other negative effects of too much screen time.
"The way to bring everyone back together is a focus on emotional intelligence," Bonitatibus said. "Just knowing and understanding where your emotions are coming from, being self-aware of those things happening, being able to control yourself before throwing a hissy fit."
He concluded his claims by encouraging people to learn about themselves and their emotions.
Screen time does have negative effects, especially on children.
Even though we don't want to hear it, screen time does negatively affect people, especially younger children who are still developing. Research has shown screen time is an independent risk factor for reduced psychological well-being in very young children.
Of course, when children's development is harmed, it hinders them later in life.
Children who grew up without screen or internet restrictions would inevitably find it difficult to adapt to real life. Dr Ateeq Qureshi, a psychiatrist from the Priory Wellbeing Centre, Dubai, explained to LiveHealthy Magazine, "There is reduced creativity — most parents these days face the complaint from their children that they are bored when their digital devices are taken away for even brief times. But boredom is not a bad thing; exploration, experimentation, and creativity spring from the space where boredom exists.”
“The big threat is that parents will become so inured to the pervasiveness of screens in their children’s lives that they give up any attempt to control or manage it,” warned Dr. Ateeq. She added, “My biggest worry ... is how unrestricted and unfettered screen use is becoming normalized. Screen use has become so prevalent that it is very hard, sometimes impossible, for parents to put limits on or monitor usage.”
A focus on emotional intelligence is critical in today's world.
What's even scarier, however, is how screens have been used as a parenting tool, especially for toddlers who have difficulty regulating emotions. Basically, if a parent gives a toddler in the throws of a meltdown access to a screen as a means to calm him or her, what that inevitably teaches them is to rely on outside sources for emotional regulation.
“When parents use screen time to calm a child’s emotions, what they’re actually doing is teaching them that it works as opposed to teaching a child that they can manage their own feelings,” explained Michael Manos, PhD, pediatric psychologist for Cleveland Clinic Children’s.
Learning to self-soothe is integral to emotional intelligence, and screens rob children of that important developmental step.
Bonitatibus' theory aligns with the experts. There is going to need to be a greater focus on teaching children emotional intelligence because they aren't learning it on their own anymore.
According to Psychology Today, a few ways to help teach emotional intelligence are to model emotional awareness and practice active listening.
Another way would be to limit screen time for children, as this is the main problem causing so many issues. This doesn't mean parents should cut children off from all forms of technology, but restrictions on their screen time, as well as what they can view when they're online, would be beneficial.
No child needs to have unfettered access to the internet for their own sake and for the development of society as a whole.
Sahlah Syeda is a writer for YourTango who covers entertainment, news, and human interest topics.