I'm a father of 2. I won't give my children smartphones while they live at home.
(Fuente: Business Insider - Beatrice Nola)As a psychologist who works in the areas of mental health and mental performance, I regularly hear horror stories about how technology is affecting children and teenagers.
I have two children, one 9-year-old and one 7-year-old, and I'm not planning to give them smartphones until they leave home.
I worry about three main things when it comes to children using smartphones.
Number one is addiction. The second issue is the opportunity cost. If the average child spends four to five hours of their day on a screen, that comes at the expense of other behaviors. Many teenagers have less sleep than they need because they're doom-scrolling, for example.
The third issue is the content itself; I worry about things like violent porn and sextortion.
We have no idea who our children are speaking to online. It feels like the Wild West, and there's very little you can do about that as a parent. You can try things like parental controls, but you're fighting a battle that you'll probably lose.
My kids won't have smartphones unless there's a massive change in the technology. I don't want to expose them to any kind of addictive screen.
