Carmen Osorio (Gijón, 40 years old), expert in technology addiction focused on the field of childhood and adolescence and creator of the platform Technology Addicts, recognizes that if she had not been involved in social networks and the internet working for so many years, with her mistakes and successes, seeing her friendly and shady face, perhaps she would not have that awareness that she has been acquiring. Given that the cell phone is one of the star gifts of Christmas, the question is almost obligatory: Is it appropriate for us to give it to a minor? For Osorio, no. “I don't consider it a good idea for anyone to give our children a smartphone, nor the family, nor the Three Wise Men, nor Perico, the one with the palotes,” continues the expert.
For Osorio, a smartphone should not even be a gift: “When you give something, the person who receives that gift does whatever they want with it, since it is something that belongs to them from that moment on. And with a smartphone “This should not be like that for a minor.” She emphasizes that with cell phones it is necessary to set rules, limits, accompany them in their use, restrict functions… “It is not something that you give away with a 'enjoy it'; “It is not a toy, nor a piece of clothing, nor a ticket to a concert,” she adds.
Q. What are the main reasons not to give a gift? smartphone?
R. A smartphone It is a very powerful object, with millions of possibilities and risks and of which we already know that 80% of minors do not make healthy use… because it traps them. So, no, I wouldn't give that to my son. In any case, when I consider that there is a real need, I will give it to you. And it is important to emphasize a real need, because if they go to places alone they need a cell phone, not a smartphone with internet access. Also, add that parents are responsible for what they do with that cell phone, that we have to make a series of decisions about its use, in addition to supervising… So that's why I think it's not a good idea to give it away; In any case, it is an assignment or loan. At what point have we gone so far in giving gifts to our children? smartphones new ones whose cost is 700 or 1,000 euros? I would never think of buying my underage daughter a Louis Vuitton bag.
Q. At what age do you think they could start having a cell phone?
R. Setting an age to start using a mobile phone is complicated because a minor whose parents are responsible with the use of technologies, are present, offer leisure alternatives and share time with their children, is not the same as those whose parents do not see in screens no danger, parents absent or not very present. With digital education, the likelihood of risky behavior decreases, but there are other issues that are not in our hands no matter how much education there is. The platforms make money based on the time we spend on them and they do not hesitate to use unethical resources, which generate addiction, so how are you going to ask a 10-year-old child or a 13-year-old kid to stop if it costs us adults? . And then there's the inappropriate content; Anyone can see it without a problem and at certain ages it is very harmful. So I think the later they have a smartphone in hands, better. I don't know when we will give it to my oldest son, he is 13 years old and won't have it anytime soon.
Q. Let's differentiate mobile from smartphone, Which one do you think is more appropriate?
R. A non-smart phone, that is, a cell phone like the one that today's parents had when they were young and with which we called and sent SMS, was enough for us and also did not generate addiction. Therefore, today a cell phone without internet would be enough if children go to school alone or go out with friends. But they have taken it upon themselves to create that need that is not real, to make you feel that if you do not have this social network or this platform you do not belong to a group. That's why it's so hard for us not to give them a cell phone. And that is why it would help a lot to not feel that pressure regarding the minimum age to access a smartphone. Objectively, they don't need one. Do you know that 81% of minors feel anxious if they have to make a phone call? They don't even dare to do that anymore. Come on, they use it for everything except calling, which is what it should be used for. Meanwhile, they use WhatsApp, an application that they cannot legally use until they are 16 years old. It's all super incongruous.
Q. Do you agree that the use of mobile phones by minors under 16 years of age should be prohibited by law?
R. We have reached a point where age regulation seems necessary. Sometimes, in life, you have to take steps back. First, because parents are overwhelmed and have had no training in all of this. Second, because it was sold to us as an advance, but… At what price? Less attention and concentration, less empathy, worse learning and communication, fewer social relationships, more disorders, more addictive behaviors… There are people who are scandalized by this prohibition, as if driving or voting were not prohibited until the age of 18. With a cell phone you can buy anything, sell, communicate with anyone in the world, consume any type of content, upload any video or photograph… How are you going to leave that in the hands of little people who are training? And we do know that education is necessary and important, but it is not incompatible with regulating its use in spaces or ages; In fact, they are complementary in many other matters. When you go to drive you take an exam, some practice and you have a minimum age, although you have known for years what each sign means, what a car is like, what a highway or a highway is. I think that in a few years we will wonder how we left something so harmful in the hands of children and adolescents.
Q. What are the best weapons to control Internet use in adolescents?
R. We must start from the basis that we cannot control our children 24 hours a day. Parents have a thousand things to do every day and we cannot be attached to them. So it's about supervising and, above all, accompanying. From the family environment, which is logically important, we must provide digital education that includes coherence on the part of adults, limits and rules, spaces and times free of Wi-Fi, and an education that encourages open communication. In this sense, the best parental control is us parents. Which does not mean that we should not install a app parental control in the smartphone that our children use. But what is not enough is to install parental controls and think that everything is controlled. And then there is another shield, the social one, which would help a lot and which has been what has made many families move in 2023. Do you remember when it seemed normal to us to smoke everywhere? Jobs, means of transportation, hospitals… few people were shocked by that. Today it would be unthinkable. Well, what is happening today with screens is that the delivery of smartphone At very young ages, abusive consumption has been normalized, the use of platforms by minors even though they cannot legally… All of this seems normal to us. Therefore, regulation by age would help not normalize its early use, for example.
You can follow Mamas & Papas on Facebook, x or sign up here to receive our biweekly newsletter.
#Carmen #Osorio #expert #technology #addiction #good #idea #parents #give #smartphone #gift #transfer #loan