Young children and teens lives have been connected to digital devices and we can say their lives are inseparable from the modern technological devices and from wizard like the internet. Dramatically, teens, children these days are living under their parents’ rules, but at the same time, they also live the same amount of time in such kind of virtual world that is being created through media, entertainment, and digital tools.
Seemingly, the modern youth are wasting hours and hours online, but at the same time they are practicing living together, creating community skills, and also teens these days are mediating the experience of the virtual world by using the lens of laptop desktop computer machines, game consoles and through cell phones connected to the cyberspace.
I neither a motivational speaker nor am I an alarmist. I am not against technological change. However, I spend plenty of time and as well as energy to polish my kids and teens world’s view. Obviously, my kids would be adults in the near future, but I really want to make sure they have enough ability to make their own decisions.
However, most of the time I really ask myself a question “do I see their activities and their personal experience on screen in terms of smartphones, social media, internet and others alike to assist their learning experience? Well most of us would say a Big “No”. This is where the problem begins how substantial influence digital devices have on our children.
According to PEW Research Center:
There is no surprise about that today kids and teens are spending too much time on the screen compared to a decade ago. However, there is another statement that might be partially true that teens are devoting all the time looking at their cell phone screen and they don’t even bother to take shut-eye at night, but to socialize on social media apps and websites in particular, according to the Pew Research center.
- Young teens these days spend 5 hours of leisure a day on screen using their digital mobile phones and computer devices
- Teens spend time on social media, gaming, surfing the web, watch videos and on TV over compared to the past decade
- On weekends screen time surprisingly increases to almost 4 hours a day apart from other digital activities
- Teens these days are taking the shut-eye up to 9 hours at night that is 1 hour and 22 minutes more compared to the teens a decade ago and most of the teens got more sleep on weekends
- Physical activity has become rare and teens playing sports around 45 minutes only per day
Teen’s daily leisure time spent on screen is 3 hours and 4 minutes and it include web surfing, using social media apps and websites, gaming and TV has held a little steady, but on weekends screen time increases
Persistent Gender Difference: Use of Virtual World via Digital Devices
Most of the parents these days are helpless and are very concerned when it comes to dealing with too much screen time of their children and male and female teens. Following are some stats of boys and girls teens that can help out parents to manage children screen time: Pew Research Center
- Teen boys are more likely to spend time on the virtual world compare to female teens using computer devices and smartphones connected to the internet:
- Teen boys spend at least 6 hours a day on their mobile phones and on computer machines to socialize through trendy social media apps and websites, play games online, web surfing, dating sites and even get access to in appropriate content.
- Female teens spend 5 hours day on their cell phone screen to socialize on social media, on gaming console and spend time on web surfing
The first and foremost precaution every parent should know that if their teens are spending significant portion of time on cell phone or computer screen, then parents should snoop on their teen’s phone.
Parents should realize that fact that if they have bought a cell phone or computer to their teens and they have not had a hidden eye on their cell phone there would be the following dangers teens may encounter with online.
Naked reality of Sexting
Sexting is the biggest concern that every parent these days have when teens spend a significant amount of time on the digital devices connected to the cyberspace. Sexting me sending or receiving sexually explicit or sexually suggestive images, videos, text, and it usually happens digitally through emails, social messaging apps by using mobile phones or computer machines. Therefore, parents should know about the naked reality of sexting.
However, teens send and receive stuff that could be provocative, nude or semi-nude pictures and videos over the web through text or using any other form of content. Teens these days are harboring sexual fantasies on their mobile phones and sexting is the most socialize activity that happens through teens digital devices connected to the internet.
Obscene content & social media
The contemporary cell phone’s front and back cameras have come up with the latest vulnerabilities in teen’s life in terms of obscene content. Teens make nude videos of themselves or video their intimacy scenes which they have had with their boyfriends and then share it on social media such as these days teen are sharing their bodies on Bigo live video streaming app and on other alike. Therefore, parents have to look after teens digital activities especially on social media that can ruin their lives at any point in time.
Online predator
Cyber bullying and stalking are the biggest threats and online concerns for parents these days. Young teens bullied online, especially who don’t bother about the online privacy and love to engage online with the strangers. Teens are more likely to bully online that show their social media profiles in terms of photos, videos, posts, contact number and home address to the strangers.
Stalkers on the other hand approach teens via social media apps and websites such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and others alike. Cyber predators are the biggest threat that can harm teens physically and mentally, therefore every parent should know how to prevent online predators, vulnerabilities online that may encounter with young boys and girls.
Health issues
Teens these days are living in a hypersexualized or live time online world where they may become obsessed with certain activities. Ultimately, teens got health issues like digital dementia, depression, stress and behavior issues, ill sleeping patterns, eating disorders and others. Therefore, parents much know about teen’s activities on screen before it’s too late.
Can Parents Deal with Negative Influence of Technology on Children Lives?
When it comes to dealing with the substantial influence of digital devices on children lives parents can easily deal with it with the use of parental control app technology. Parents just need to put teens under constant online parenting. Therefore, parents have to have access to their teen’s mobile phones and computer machines and then just need to install cell phone and PC parental control software. Once parents have done it successfully, then they can easily get to know about teens and kids’ activities on digital devices. It lets parents monitor a cell phone or computer screen in real –time using live screen recording app for cell phone and PC.
In addition, parents can monitor social media apps logs using the web control panel of the mobile phone surveillance software. You can view messages logs, conversations, shared media and Voice messages logs of WhatsApp and Facebook.
Moreover, parents can monitor browsing history in terms off visited websites, apps and bookmarked websites. Parents can remotely capture screenshots of the teen’s activities and get to know about the activities having documented proofs. Furthermore, parents can remotely control teen’s digital phones in a way that they can view installed apps, block text messaging, incoming cell phone calls, and last but not the least internet access.
