Strange things have been amiss in the Beattie household recently… firstly the dreaded Xbox stopped working, and then the TV and complicated movie library server system gave up. I had restricted You Tube viewing on the iPad a while back and so with these technological difficulties becoming long term (the man of the house having relocated abroad last year) the remaining residents of the Beattie house begrudgingly adjusted to the new lifestyle… (winging it mainly when technology is involved!)
Initially the two boys (aged 6 & 8) complained to all and sundry that our house was boring as ‘nothing worked’ but two months on it has been a real eye opener to observe the changes in them; namely that they are calmer, happier, more interactive and play a lot better (as well as the very welcome side effect of being more helpful, affectionate and talkative with me!)
This experiment has made me a lot more aware of the effects that technology has on our wellbeing. We are all aware of how having Smartphones in our working lives has had the adverse effect of actually increasing our workloads but how about the consequences of technology hijacking our free time?
Gaming and Smartphone addiction is the fastest growing addiction of recent years and yet the most under researched and understood.
I specialise in addictive behaviours and it is generally accepted that happy people have less addictions. With this in mind it is worrying that research into the use of gaming consoles and technology has shown that they reduce many areas of wellbeing including; self esteem, social skills, confidence and happiness levels long-term. This has the potential of being a ticking time-bomb with regards to use in children and teens.
Habit or addiction? How long do you spend doing ‘real things’ when working hours finish? I’ve noticed that there has been a massive increase in people citing lack of interests in recent years, preferring instead to spend the evenings on iPads and Facebook instead.
Addictions actually occur due to our human survival instinct which is to always push ourselves to develop new skills and interests. Without new challenges in place we are much more likely to enter into addictive cycles of behaviour, (which interestingly often change behaviour over time unless the underlying ‘need’ for the artificial high is being met).
In children it has the effect of creating obsessive and aggressive behaviour- amplified by the use of violent or age inappropriate apps and games. I’m sure we have all witnessed the dramas of an ‘ipad strop’ as a result?
After all, Steve Jobs the founder of Apple was famously quoted that he limited his children’s use of technology and didn’t let them use iPads at all? Whilst my iPhone still lists as one of my favouritest things ever (I blame the beautiful sparkly Swaroski case for its aesthetic allure!!) I am well aware that its all too easy to get addicted to the darn thing… so…
Try:
1) A phone amnesty- after a certain agreed time- all iphones/ipads to be handed in so you can interact with each other minus technology
2) staging a regular ‘power cut’ or ahem ‘modem shortfall’… its interesting how a technology free evening can mix things up
3) Removing Xboxes/tvs and gaming consoles from bedrooms… not only are you saving your beloved ones from a lifetime of rubbish sleeping habits but you are also saving them from overload exposure, social isolation and obesity. (if you’ve ever seen the South Park episode where Cartman and his friends get addicted to gaming you are sooo on my wavelength right now! … if not… youtube it!)
Happy, happy 2015 my friends!
