The issue of addiction and especially media addiction regarding childhood is of great importance in today's conditions and life. It is a fact that authoritarian parents who do everything on behalf of their children raise their children to be dependent on them. In cases where the child is not allowed to be free and make his own choices, it is possible that the child will ask for help from his parents even in self-care in later ages. Media addiction in children is usually caused by families. One of the biggest risk factors for the child's addiction to this aspect is that a child who needs his parents at a young age is directed to media tools by his parents for various reasons. Parents who use media tools to eat, sleep, and entertain themselves knowingly or unknowingly cause great harm to their children. It will not be surprising for a child who gets used to such a routine to generalize this to his/her life in the future and to want to use media tools intensively and become addicted. It is a fact that this addiction carries risks in many aspects and has a serious price when it comes to the addiction process. A child who does not yet have the capacity to distinguish between reality is likely to attempt dangerous actions, thinking that the fictional events, objects, actions and people he sees in media are real. It can be shown that he claimed that he could fly, thinking that he was one of the characters, and that he jumped off the balcony as a result of this perception. In addition, the child's self-perception, object perception, and perceptions of interpersonal relationships carry the risk of being structured as a part of the fictional world that he/she watches.
The clearest symptoms of addiction to media content and digital media tools in children are; The child constantly demands electronic devices as gifts, constantly prefers to use media tools instead of activities to be done outside and with people, and the use of media tools is discouraged. These can be listed as violently resisting the parent's request to stop, or wanting to use media tools when first waking up in the morning or before going to sleep. At this point, parents should set a limit on the use of media tools, and if the situation cannot be coped with, help should be sought from a developmental psychologist (pedagogue).
Personal development between children who use media tools intensively and children who use these tools in a controlled manner under parental supervision. There are many differences in terms of The most striking difference is that children who use media intensively are behind both psychosocially and cognitively compared to children who use media tools under parental supervision. For children who use media tools under parental supervision, communicating more frequently with real people and objects in a real world will ensure that their development progresses on track. Children with media addiction are at risk of psychosocial and cognitive retardation, as well as retardation in physical development and various health problems due to inactivity.
Today, parents have some influence on the increase in children's addiction rates to media content and the use of media tools. There are. The biggest factor in this increase is that parents see media tools as a kind of electronic babysitter that helps them in child care. Nowadays, it is seen that parents often use media tools to keep their children entertained while doing their own work. In addition, they often use media tools as rewards for the activities they want their children to do (such as eating, sleeping). At the same time, parents who use media extensively themselves set a bad example for their children. Depending on the period they are in, children copy exactly the behaviors and statements of the parent of the same gender with whom they identify. For this reason, the parent's intense use of media tools will cause the child to behave in the same way.
As a result, the adaptation of the child to a real social life will require traditional child and play practices. One of the most important requirements in this regard is for families to spend more time with their children, play games together, in short, interact as much as possible, in order to adopt the child's culture, to develop a healthy personality structure that can provide self-control, and to strengthen communication. Media devices such as tablets, phones and televisions should be used under parental supervision and a certain restriction should be imposed on this use. At the same time, a democratic attitude should be adopted towards the child. In other words, it should neither be too restrictive nor too permissive. Limits should be set for the child from an early age. A routine should be developed for the child's eating and sleeping hours. One of the most important things is that parents agree and agree on decisions, punishments and rewards.
Read: 0
