Monitoring Children and Technology

The rapid development in technology has overwhelmed today’s society. The impact of technology on children has become a contentious topic in today’s world. Because of the increased use of technology, most parents have differing views about whether or not their children should be supervised when using technology. Every day, technology is improving the lives of both children and adults, and the influence of technology on children has ignited both concern and praise. Children have no choice but to be affected by the ever-growing technology because they are exposed to various types of technology during their lives. In fact, children have become enamored with technology, and this has significant effects on their lives. Therefore, children and technology need close monitoring because of its negative effects on their lives. Technology has opened up a modern world with great opportunities, but these opportunities have come with adverse effects on the users, and this includes children.

Understanding the effects of technology on children has become a challenging topic. Some people argue that it has an adverse influence on the social lives of children and young adolescents, while others argue that not all effects are harmful. Therefore, as the series of debates continue, more research is being done on the issue assessing the positives and negatives of technology on children. However, despite the study and the many debates, it is evident that technology has had damaging effects on the lives of young children and its use should be monitored. Technology is affecting the minds of young children in ways that can be harmful. Therefore, is not closely monitored, technology can have severe effects on the lives of children and their behaviors.

Technology presents popular leisure activities for all young people in the society today. As a result, children tend to spend most of their time using different types of technologies, which include televisions, gaming platform, computers, and the social media. It is evident that a great proportion of technology and media contains various forms of violence and this can be detrimental to the lives of the young people (Lauricella, Wartella, & Rideout, 2015). The use of technology can lead to aggressive behaviors in children and for this reason, it is vital for parents to monitor all the types of technology their children use on a daily basis.

Most children are exposed to violence due to the use of various technologies, for instance, the social media platforms and this has serious detrimental effects on their lives. The exposure to social media violence through various social media platforms increases children’s aggressive behaviors. Today, children have personal computers and cell phones, which they use to look up for anything they wish on the internet. Cell phones and computers, just like any other forms of technology have their pros and cons, and for this reason, children should be monitored while using them. According to Blackwell, Lauricella, and Wartella, children exposed to various technologies that expose them to violence at a tender age are at a greater risk of being aggressive in their later life (2014). Therefore, this can be avoided by parents closely monitoring the types of social media technologies their children use and the exact hours they spend using them. These forms of technology are of great benefit to the young generations, but it can be lethal to if the use of social media and cell phones is not closely monitored. The time children spend on social media, and their phones should be limited to close monitoring and replaced with active activities such as physical activities and other outdoor leisure events.

Screen technology accounts for the leading portion of leisure time for children. In many cases, children spend most of their leisure time watching movies and the television, and this is where they are mostly exposed to media violence. Televisions air content that may not be appropriate for young children and parents can prevent their children from being exposed to such content by monitoring their use of television. It is true that people are always affected by what they watch on screens and children tend to spend endless hours watching the TV, and although this is entertaining, it can have deleterious effects on them (Vaala & Bleakley, 2015).). Watching television all the time can get in the way of children exploring other active leisure activities. Hence, children who are not monitored and they end watching violent TV shows, and movies will end up being aggressive to others. Technology can turn children into hostile and hateful people because they imitate everything they see and this call for their monitoring.

Video games as a form of technology pose serious emotional and mental harm to young children who spend hours playing them. In fact, video games are the most significant concern of technological effect on children. Most children will always imitate what they see in the games, and this will greatly affect how they behave towards other people. Video games are full of violent actions and many children like and are addicted to violent games and this promoted aggressiveness and violence in their lives. Violence in video games is harmful to children’s social life, and for this reason, children and technology need to be monitored closely because the effect of violent and non-violent games is determined by the amount of time children spend playing them. Therefore, if monitored, then their effects can be reduced, and children will be stopped from spending time playing violent video games.

There have been various speculations about technology being the leading cause of violence in children. Opponents claim that technology has many positive than adverse effects and that children should be left alone while using them. They argue that children learn a lot from technology with the use of phones, computers, games, TV’s, and the social media and restricting them will be denying them a chance to embrace the growing technological world. According to Greitemeyer and Mügge, children can learn several things with technology for instance; it helps in their education, communication, and competition skills (2014). However, despite the positive influence of technology on children, many of them might contain harmful and violent content that can pose serious dangers to the future behaviors of young children. Even though there are positive outcomes for children using technology, there are several negative effects, and this calls for parental monitoring on its use.

In addition, they argue that technology, especially video games are of great benefit to children. Granic, Lobel, and Engels argue that video games can teach children social skills in addition to being the best bonding activity for young children (2014). When children sit together using this form of technology, they learn to interact with each other well, and this brings a bond between them. Moreover, apart from gaming, children can use the screen media technology to improve their socialization skills through recommended children movies, and this is beneficial to their future socialization and life issues. Nonetheless, as much as this might be true, it is misleading if the children are not monitored because they might end up choosing the wrong movies and the wrong games that are meant for adults and with a lot of violence. Furthermore, violent video games can cause serious behavioral problems in children.

It is apparent that the damaging effects of technology are overwhelming and can significantly affect the future life of our young children. Hence, it is essential for there to be close monitoring of children and the use of technology to protect them from the detrimental effects. It is vital for parents/guardians to take a close watch on the types of technology their children are consuming at a tender age and as they grow up because some kinds of technology can be harmful to children (Nguyen, 2016).

The use of technology by children among the young people is growing at an alarming rate. Hence, it is necessary for parents to monitor the types of technology children use and the time they spend using these kinds of technologies. It is true that this is out of hands for many parents, but again, parents must control how much technology their children are exposed to (Lin & Atkin, 2014). This may not seem to be pressing for some parents who are against monitoring their children, but more and more, technology is adversely affecting children in the society today. We have witnessed cases of children shooting others in schools while others bullying their peers with the use of technology until they commit suicide just to mention but a few all because they are exposed to too much technology or rather violent technology. It is ostensible that the growing use of technology has a great influence on the life and future behavior of children in the society today. Therefore, as children embrace the technological transforming world, they should be monitored to protect them from all the harms that come with technology use. Technology affects people of all ages, and this includes children.

In conclusion, the growing use of technology poses serious problems to our children if not monitored. Lack of monitoring the types of technology used by children can have a cathartic effect on their future lives, and how they behave towards the people around them. There are different types of technology being consumed by children namely, video games, televisions, the social media, cell phones, computers, just to mention but a few. It is true that with these types of technology, children can learn many things in addition to communicating efficiently. However, it is vital for parents/guardians to monitor the types of technology their children are using strictly because despite being beneficial, their influence on them can be detrimental. Technology can be harmful to the lives of young children and adolescents if not closely monitored. Children’s behavior is mostly acquired or rather learned from the people around them, and what they see and this includes what they watch or consume with the use of technology. Therefore, children and technology need close monitoring.

References

Blackwell, C. K., Lauricella, A. R., & Wartella, E. (2014). Factors Influencing DigitalTechnology Use in Early Childhood Education. Computers & Education, 77, 82-90.

Granic, I., Lobel, A., & Engels, R. C. (2014). The Benefits of Playing Video Games. AmericanPsychologist, 69(1), 66.

Greitemeyer, T., & Mügge, D. O. (2014). Video Games Do Affect Social Outcomes: A MetaAnalytic Review of The Effects of Violent And Prosocial Video Game Play. Personalityand Social Psychology Bulletin, 40(5), 578-589.

Lauricella, A. R., Wartella, E., & Rideout, V. J. (2015). Young Children’s Screen Time: TheComplex Role of Parent and Child Factors. Journal of Applied DevelopmentalPsychology, 36, 11-17.

Lin, C. A., & Atkin, D. J. (Eds.). (2014). Communication Technology and Social Change:Theory and Implications. Routledge.

Nguyen, C. (2016). Monitoring Your Teenagers’ Online Activity: Why Consent or DisclosureShould Be Required. Seattle J. Soc. Just., 15, 261.

Vaala, S. E., & Bleakley, A. (2015). Monitoring, Mediating, and Modeling: Parental Influenceon Adolescent Computer and Internet Use in the United States. Journal of Children andMedia, 9(1), 40-57.