Children within the age range of five to sixteen years spend six hours a day looking at mobile phones or screen ( Renzulli & Reynolds, 2018) . The revolution that came with technology changed the behaviors of many people. Technology, for instance, has changed the way children are developing currently as well as how they perceive the world. As numerous research studies assert, technology is at the core of positive progression among children in society. Education, socialization, and mental progress all have been impacted positively by the use of technology among children. Despite the glorious side of the technology, there are notable challenges those children exhibits that link to the number of hours they spend while using these forms of technology. According to Grist, Croker, Denne & Stallard (2019), technology act as a digital babysitter, keeping children occupied and quiet temporarily. As a result of both positive and negative challenges that technology exhibit among children; its use among children is currently a hot topic in the world. From research studies done on technology and children, it is evident that through technology plays a critical role in shaping up children's welfare and development; parents should have a concern about the negative impact that it has on children that overuse them.
Why Children are addicted to Technology
Before any attempt to understand how technology has either positively or negatively impacted on children, it would be good to understand what makes children glued on the screen for a better part of their day. By definition, addiction is the psychological and physical inability to stop using something despite the consequences. The addition makes children unable to concentrate a wholes day without having a glance at a screen. According Stallard, Croker & Denne (2018) , technology is not only the case of children but also adults. According to these researches, technology can turn people into zombies and capture their minds to the extent that it is difficult to withdraw. Take an example of Facebook. There are instances where a person logs in on Facebook to check on something. Before the person realizes, he or she shall have spent almost thirty minutes, which passes without him or her noticing. Technology thus is meant to persuade people to take specific actions, and this makes it successful in capturing the attention of children ( Light, McNaughton & Caron, 2019).
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Another reason is the modern-day culture. Technology is everywhere in the current world. Children have access to these devices at their disposal. Further, people use technology devices in almost everything they undertake or do. In this sense, it has become difficult for the parents to stop children from using technology devices because they also suffer from the same technology syndrome. Some parents go to the extent of doing away with technological tools in the house, but this ends up making the children socially and academically isolated. There is also peer influence that such children face when they interact with their peers that have the freedom to use a mobile phone and play video games. It forces parents to compensate by ensuring that their children also have such devices to avoid the isolation that may result in numerous social complications.
The positive side of technology on children
Exposing children to modern technology is beneficial in many ways. First, it helps in improving hand-eye coordination. As kids develop, some of them tend to have some challenges with body coordination. Lloyd et al. (2018) assert that when children get exposed to the screen early, they find it easy to coordinate their had and eyes. It mostly happens when they use their hands to play games on the screen. Also, technology empowers children to communicate. Communication is primarily essential in a situation where the kid is away from the parents. For instance, take an example where a child is enrolled to study in a country outside the motherland. In such a case, the child would like to stay in contact with the parents as a source of motivation as they pursue their academic success. Constant communication through skypes and social media in addition to calls all motivate communication and thus reduce the distance between such a student and the family. Take also a situation where a kid is in danger while at home, and the parents are away. In a situation where such a kid is technology literate, it would be easy to communicate for help.
Socialization and education are also other areas were the interaction between the children and technology has proven beneficial. Smart devices such as smartphone make it easy for children to form a social network of peers. Through WhatsApp group and Facebook group, children are in a position to form a social network which would be beneficial for them as they grow. In such groups, children learn from their friend's experience on how to handle themselves and also deals with pressures that come at each of their growth stages. Further, Ahn et al., (2016) state that technology has become part of the current education system and children must be part of the technology to conform to the culture change in the education sector. In the current education system, technology devices are enhancing education by making it easy and simplifying different subjects which were once termed difficult or challenging for students. It means that encouraging children to adapt to technology at a young age is advantageous because they will be in a better position to interact effectively and productively with technology in an educational environment.
Allison (2018) discusses that technology has become part of the corporate world, and isolating children from technology is doing more harm than good. Since the introduction of technology in the corporate world, the corporate industry has seen a massive revolution towards digitalizing their operations. There is no industry where technology has not made an impact. In most cases, it would be an added advantage if part of the resume or one of the certificates a potential employee has is that of information technology. It implies that children must have the chance to begin interacting with technology at an early age because it shapes not only their lives but their future careers. The same applies to all public sectors in the world. Most of the public services are automated, and this means that it calls for digital literacy for a person to be able to be comfortable in the environment. As a result of such reasons, it is essential to ensure that children interact with technology at an early stage of their life to ensure that they are comfortable in their environment.
The wrong side of children and Technology
Despite such positive contribution of technology in the life of children; it is still a disaster in many ways. First, technology creates a situation where children are unable to have time to socialize and play with their peers, and this risk exposing them to health issues such as obesity. In most cases, children get addicted to technology to appoint that they do not get enough time to play. After school, such children are glued on television watching their favorite programs. In this sense, they do not get enough time to play with their peers. Inadequate playtime results in numerous social challenges that can affect a child’s life as he or she grows up. Further, insufficient playing time can expose them to inactivity, which also increases their chances of acquiring different health conditions such as obesity.
Spaan et al. (2019) reveal that electronic devices intrude on the sleeping time and thus create sleep problems such as insomnia. In a survey cited by the Spaan et al., (2019) the result revealed that 90% of adolescents have electronic devices in their bedroom. A 2014 review found consistent evidence that sleep was hampered by screen time, primarily to shortened sleep duration and a delay in the timing of sleep. Ninety percent of the studies reviewed reports the latter findings. It implies that due to technology, such children have inadequate sleeping time, and this is not healthy for their growth and developments.
A decrease in physical health, as well as reduced intimate relationship with families, are other problems that come from the relationship between children and technology. With technology, there is reduced activity, and this comes with weight gain that later affects the child. Further, technology also comes a limited time with the family ( Ahn et al., 2016). A child spends most of their time using technology; it may reduce their interaction with family members. Technology such as social media also has been proven to contribute largely to reduce self-confidence in the children. Lastly, the excessive use of technology also results in vulnerability to brainwashing, reduce development on social and other meaningful skills in life.
In conclusion, technology and children have both positive and negative sides. Technology involvement at a young age increase digital literacy that plays an advantage in life in the modern world. However, it is also a tool that is destructive, mostly on children’s growth. In this case, parents need to find a way to reduce the excessive interaction between the children and technology to maximize the benefits and reduce risks that result from child-technology relationship.
References
Ahn, S. J., Johnsen, K., Moore, J., Brown, S., Biersmith, M., & Ball, C. (2016). Using virtual pets to increase fruit and vegetable consumption in children: A technology-assisted social cognitive theory approach. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking , 19 (2), 86-92.
Allison, K. (2018). Online Risks, Sexual Behaviors, And Mobile Technology Use In Early Adolescent Children: Parental Awareness, Protective Practices, And Mediation.
Grist, R., Croker, A., Denne, M., &Stallard, P. (2019). Technology Delivered Interventions for Depression and Anxiety in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Clinical child and family psychology review , 22 (2), 147-171.
Light, J., McNaughton, D., & Caron, J. (2019). New and emerging AAC technology supports for children with complex communication needs and their communication partners: State of the science and future research directions. Augmentative and Alternative Communication , 35 (1), 26-41.
Lloyd, S., Cleland, J., Crampin, L., Campbell, L., Zharkova, N., & Palo, J. P. (2018).Visualizing speech: identification of atypical tongue-shape patterns in the expression of children with cleft lip and palate using ultrasound technology. Craniofacial Society of Great Britain and Ireland .
Renzulli, L., & Reynolds, J. (2018). Integration or Infiltration: Parents, Children, and Technology Use in Educational Settings.
Spain, M., van den Belt-Dusebout, A. W., van den Heuvel-Eibrink, M. M., Hauptmann, M., Lambalk, C. B., Burger, C. W., ... & OMEGA-steering group Schatz R Kortman M Laven JSE van Santbrink EJP van der Westerlaken LAJ Cohlen BJ Braat DDM Smeenk JMJ Land JA Goddijn M van Golde RJT van Rumste MME Hamilton CJCM Meeuwissen PAM. (2019). Risk of cancer in children and young adults conceived by assisted reproductive technology. Human Reproduction , 34 (4), 740-750.
Stallard, P., Croker, A., & Denne, M. (2018). Technology Delivered Interventions for Depression and Anxiety in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.
