The Great Disconnect In A Connected World

(MENAFN- Kashmir Observer)
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A few years ago, whenever we visited a friend's house, she had a strict rule: everyone had to leave their phones at the entrance and only retrieve them when leaving.

At first, I thought this was overly controlling, but I soon understood her reasoning.

Without our devices, we ended up talking, laughing, and enjoying meals together-just like in the old days. However, the children struggled.

They kept interrupting our conversations, complaining there was“nothing to do,” especially since the other kids at the gathering felt the same way.

They sat in bored silence until they were finally allowed to use their phones, after which they mindlessly scrolled through their feeds for the rest of the evening.

Read Also Letter to Editor: The Cost of Digital Overload in Kashmir Hacked Childhood and Adolescence

This phenomenon isn't limited to children. Nowadays, it's all too common to see even parents sitting with family in restaurants, eyes locked on their phones rather than engaging in conversation.

'FOMO' (the fear of missing out) drives many of us to compulsively check our devices. But if we're always connected, why do so many young people feel profoundly lonely and disconnected? A University of Pennsylvania study offers some insight.

Researchers discovered that participants restricted to just ten minutes per social media platform daily reported significantly lower levels of loneliness and depression compared to those who scrolled without limits.

The instant gratification of endless scrolling fuels impulsive behavior, keeping us glued to our screens.

Ironically, those constantly on their phones often justify their habits not just to others, but to themselves, failing to recognize the deeper issue: an unhealthy dependence on digital validation.

The very technology designed to connect us globally often isolates us in our personal lives. There's undeniable evidence that our hyper-connected world is fostering real relational disconnection.

The American Psychological Association, in a report, calls out social media platforms as inherently 'unsafe for children' and supports American author Jonathan Haidt's view in his book The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness-that kids should have little to no access to such platforms until they turn 16.

The basic argument of the book is that we've overprotected our children in the real world and under-protected them online.

Haidt also suggests that parents need to roll back the phone-based childhood and restore the play-based childhood.

This is also well reflected in Netflix's gripping four-episode series Adolescence, which surpassed 66.3 million views last month, becoming a major talking point.

The series serves as an alarming 'call to action' for parents and teens. Suddenly, people are seeing social media's impact on children from a completely different perspective.

However, having taken up the responsible social media usage campaign #BeThereBeAware in 2022, this theme feels like well-explored territory to me.

During primary research involving 625 university students in the UAE, alarming statistics highlighted significant parental negligence regarding screen time.

Many students raised a critical question: How can parents enforce digital discipline when they themselves are constantly on their phones, preoccupied with work, or emotionally unavailable?

This demands serious introspection from all parents. Too often, in public spaces or during busy moments, parents resort to handing their children phones as a quick distraction.

Yet, when these children inevitably develop an addiction to screens, the same parents expect them to simply“switch off.”

The issue, however, is far more complex than enforcing rules.

In a series of disturbing incidents across India, young lives have been lost or forever altered by conflicts stemming from smartphone use, exposing deep societal concerns about digital addiction and adolescent mental health.

In a heartbreaking incident last year, a 14-year-old boy studying in Class 9 died after his father beat him with a cricket bat over his mobile phone addiction.

In another case, a 14-year-old Kerala boy stabbed his mother after she refused to give him her phone for gaming. A 16-year-old Class 10 student ended his life after his father, struggling with financial difficulties, could not purchase a smartphone for him.

There are many such unfortunate, avoidable stories.

Addressing these challenges requires collaboration among all stakeholders to promote responsible digital usage and regulation.

Policymakers must establish ethical guidelines that prioritize privacy, security, and transparency, particularly for adolescents, with strict consent mechanisms in place.

Educational institutions should also take proactive steps by adopting phone-free policies, following the example of schools in developed nations that have already banned mobile devices on campuses.

Parents need to make a special effort to spend quality, phone-free time with their kids, adolescents, and grown-up children.

The way ahead demands conscious reworking and relearning.

Only by joining hands can we shield our children's future from the silent erosion of screens.

Let's replace video games with problem-solving adventures, swap emoji-laden chats with soulful conversations, and choose eye contact over app-dependent calls.

In this digital age, perhaps our wisest step forward is to thoughtfully step back to the old days, reclaiming the human connections that truly nourish us.

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