SPOTLIGHT ON SAFEGUARDING
Working together to keep our young people safe
Secondary | September 2024
Problematic smartphone use
AccordingtotheOfcomreport‘Children’sMediaLives2024',children arespendingbetween6-8hoursadayonsocialmedia,throughtheir smartphonesorotherdevices.Thisisanincreasefrom12hoursaweek in2014 UnlikethecontentthatusedtobewatcheddirectlyontheTV, youngpeopleareoftenunsupervised,leavingthemthinkingthat everythingtheyareseeingisrealandtruetolife. Therearemanyreasonsthatsocialmediaissoaddictiveandkeepsourchildrenontheirphones:
In this issue:
Problematic smartphone use
Better sleep routines
App focus: Snapchat
Socialmediaprovidesinstantfeedbackthroughlikesandcommentsallowingthemtofeelsocial validationandapproval
The latest trends are showcased on social media leaving young people with a fear of missing out. This increasesthedrivetochecktheirfeedsobsessively.
Everynotificationorpositiveinteractiontriggersareleaseofdopamine,thefeelgoodhormone
Young people are exposed to versions of others’ lives on social media which seem faultless. This leads to comparisonsandthedesiretoprojectasimilarlyperfectimageofthemselves.
Socialmediaprovidesaplacetoconnectwithotherswhotheymightnotmeetinreallife Italsoprovides communitiesconnectedwithhobbies.
Proposedsmartphoneboundaries
Implementingboundariescanbechallenging onceachildhasbecomeaccustomedto unrestrictedsmartphoneusage.However, onceyouhavemadeaconnectionwithyour child(seeimage,right)aroundthereasonsyou mustkeepthemsafeontheirsmartphone,itis advisabletoputboundariesinplace.Hereare somesuggestedboundaries:
Parentaccess:
Sharedpasswords.
Parentandchildregularlyreviewsocial mediaandmessagingappstogether.
Screenlimits: Dailylimits
Phone-freeactivities.
Phone-freeareas: Nodevicesinthebedroomorbathroom. Devicestobestoredawayinacentral chargingarea30minutesbeforebed.
Conduct:
Honestyabouthowthephoneisused Respectandkindnessshowntoeveryone youarecommunicatingwith.
Toptips:
Occupyyourchildduringphone-free times,orsupportthemtooccupy themselves.
Thiswillbeachallengebutyouaredoingit toprotectyourchild.
