The Epidemic of Screen Addiction: a Call for Awareness and Action

In the last decade, the overuse and addiction to technology—particularly devices with screens such as handheld electronic games, laptops, computers, portable tablets, and most prevalently, smartphones—has erupted, creating an epidemic. This phenomenon almost guarantees that individuals will never spend a moment entirely focused and engaged with society and reality. Studies focusing on adolescents and youth in various health clinics, households, and transitional programs have documented a pandemic of emotional disorders stemming from screen overuse.

Impact on Emotional and Social Development

Such disorders generally arise from disproportionate usage, leading to solitude and seclusion from society and one's surroundings, collective emotional delays, unhealthy relationships, and a failure to mature.

The result is a generation of teenagers and young adults who lack age-appropriate social and emotional skills to meet the expectations and social norms of early adulthood. Screen-based addictions can cause an inability to regulate oneself productively and hinder the development of personal and authentic human relationships, creating a cascade of potentially harmful and inescapable disorders. Furthermore, screen addiction can exacerbate specific personality disorders, particularly in adolescent women, who may form relationships at an accelerated pace online, leading to unfulfilling, dangerous, and often inauthentic connections.

Factors Contributing to Screen Addiction

Numerous factors contribute to this course of emotional dysfunction caused by screens. Like most addictive activities, the ease of access and societal acceptance of screen usage are major factors driving the widespread epidemic of screen-based addiction. With technology replacing traditional handwritten media as the standard form of communication, youth and adolescents have unprecedented access to screens, whether they are on small handheld devices, large flat screens, or even watches. It's crucial to recognize that the technology itself plays a significant role in this surge of addiction. Additionally, adolescents and young adults, who are still developing their identities, may exploit screen communication to experiment with new identities and behaviors in a private, often anonymous manner. This can delay the development of a genuine and healthy identity, as it is easy to mistake common behaviors for healthy ones. Just because an activity is widespread does not mean it is without consequences. Excessive use of screen technologies can lead to isolation, superficial relationships, and emotional and social stunting, such as immaturity and an inability to engage socially.

Consequences of Secretive Screen Usage

Due to the hidden and secretive nature of screen-based technology, adolescents and young adults often fulfill their need for excitement and rule-breaking online, resulting in a high incidence of high-risk or illicit activities within this demographic. Consequently, many adolescents and young adults lack the expected emotional and social skills for their age group. Additionally, screen addiction can impair one's ability to balance and maintain personal control, leading to a reliance on virtual worlds and an inability to form close, genuine human relationships. Screen-based addictions can also exacerbate specific personality disorders. Women, in particular, may form erratic online relationships with strangers, weakening their true social skills and ability to develop stable, healthy face-to-face relationships. These women may become overly dependent on these relationships in a detrimental manner.

Role of Parents and Authority Figures

Parents and authority figures can inadvertently encourage excessive or improper technology use and should pay more attention to this nationwide problem. Screen technologies offer an unbelievably convenient parenting tool, often used by parents with conflicting schedules, personal emotional issues, or life stressors to avoid dealing with their child's challenging behaviors. However, by the time a parent becomes suspicious of their child's screen overuse, it is often already a significant issue. Parents must understand their authority and power to intervene, regardless of whether the child is a youth, adolescent, or young adult, even if they live independently at home.

Strategies for Mitigating Screen Addiction

Parents should not feel obligated to grant unfettered access to personal screen devices. Instead, they should limit and discourage excessive screen time, especially if their child has not yet learned the essential skill of self-regulating time effectively and healthily. Placing technology in open and accessible settings, such as the living room or kitchen, allows for easy monitoring of the child's screen activities. These shared spaces are ideal because families tend to gather there. If screen overuse becomes uncontrollable and harmful to the child's development, seeking help from a professional, such as a psychologist or child therapist experienced in treating addictions, can be beneficial. These professionals can provide valuable guidance and treatments to address the issue.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the epidemic of screen addiction among adolescents and young adults demands immediate attention. The overuse of screen-based technologies has far-reaching consequences on emotional and social development, exacerbating existing personality disorders and hindering the formation of authentic relationships. Parents, educators, and society must recognize the gravity of this issue and take proactive steps to mitigate its effects. By fostering awareness and implementing strategies to regulate screen time, we can help the next generation develop the social and emotional skills necessary for a healthy and fulfilling life.

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