(ANSA) – ROME, SEPTEMBER 30 – First clinical trial in Australia of treatments for a new addiction that is increasingly widespread among younger people: addiction to mobile phone and computer screens. Conducted by the Screens and Gaming Disorder Clinic and Macquarie University in Sydney, the results indicate that parents can be successful in reducing the impact of this addiction on their children’s well-being by regulating and limiting access to their devices, rather than seizing them. The researchers instructed 689 pairs of parents on five strategies: setting limits on the home WiFi network; limits on mobile data; disconnect wifi at bedtime; negotiate device access limits and establish consequences such as access limits for violating rules.
Parents completed a questionnaire about their children’s behavior, indicating whether they failed to turn in schoolwork due to being plugged into devices, or whether they damaged property in arguments over access to cell phones and computers. Among parents in the trial whose children met the criteria for screen addiction, 32% reported that their children were no longer addicted. The highest success rate, 60%, was for parents whose children had symptoms of video game addiction. “Smartphones and associated apps are designed to be addictive and maximize the time users spend on them,” said Amy Friedlander, co-founder of the parent group Wait Mate. It can be difficult even for adults to regulate their use, and even more so for children and adolescents whose brains are still developing. (HANDLE).
2024-10-01 21:04:33