A new report commissioned by Emmanuel Macron in January warns of “children’s hyper-connectivity and the consequences for their health, their development and their future”, proposing some drastic measures.
A new expert report commissioned by the executive last January and published by several regional dailies on Monday, April 29, warns against the use of screens among children. After several months of work, this ten-member committee recommended banning digital devices for children under 3 years of age and mobile phones for children under 11 years of age. Experts also recommend integrating the Internet on these smartphones only from the age of 13. Note that this report is intended to “guide parents and not impose legal restrictions,” explained one of the authors, as reported by AFP.
If this continues, social networks will be banned. The Commission considers it preferable to initially only install so-called “ethical” apps without specifying which ones they are, from the age of 15, before opening social networks like TikTok, Instagram or Snapchat, which “from the age of 18 starting”: old A commitment that may seem extreme, but which will be essential “for the future of our society, our civilization and perhaps even our humanity,” explained the report, which was cited by the organization. The voice of the north . “After three months of work, the commission became convinced that it needed to adopt a discourse of truth to describe the reality of the hyper-connectivity children suffer and the consequences for their health, development, future, our future too…”
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Depression, myopia
For experts, social networks are undoubtedly a factor in teenage anxiety and depression. “There is a very clear consensus on the direct and indirect negative effects of screens,” they explained in unison, including, in particular, “sleep, a sedentary lifestyle that contributes to obesity, or even myopia. And continues. “When it comes to mental health, particularly depression and anxiety, social media use appears to be a risk factor when there is vulnerability; (…) screens do not cause neurodevelopmental disorders, including attention deficit disorders or autism spectrum disorders, but vigilance is required over their excessive use to avoid “symptom amplification”.
The group of experts says it wants to attack “predatory services” on social networks, specifically limiting “endless scrolling” or “autoplay videos”. The goal is also to be able to further configure these apps for better parental controls. “Cognitive biases are used to lock children into screens, to control them, to re-engage them, to monetize them, said commission co-chair Amin Benyamina at the microphone. Western France. It’s a capture economy. Parents are almost out of the picture, facing a market imposed on society.’
The authors reiterate that this report does not aim to implement these measures, recognizing the difficulties of implementing such arrangements in homes. According to them, it should be seen more as support. “You have a framework where you can perhaps negotiate with your children, saying, ‘There are people who think, people who know the subject and support these kinds of things,'” resumed the expert. It is enough, perhaps, to gently change the way of thinking.
Source: Le Figaro
