Here's Why Parents are Worried About Phone Addiction Among Girls Between the Age of 14 to18

Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic struck, the ‘work from home’ concept of office goers was adopted by schools and colleges too. As digital classes commenced, parents were forced to give mobile and computer access to their children. This led to students being glued to their computer and mobile screens, forever. Well, you might wonder that your child is studying but that is not true always. It is important for parents to keep an eye on their children.

Abhayam 181, the Gujarat government’s helpline for women, informed Times Of India that there has been a 74% rise in distress calls related to digital addiction among young girls. One of the families called the helpline as they were distraught after their 14-year-old left home to meet a friend, she met online. The family had given her the phone for the first time to attend an online class.

The coordinator of the helpline number, Falguni Patel revealed that the majority of calls were about girls, aged between 12 and 18, who were first time given mobile phones to attend online classes. She informed that distress calls also concerned parents who were worried about their 14-18 year old leaving the house to unite with their virtual friends. A lot of parents confessed that they had not given smartphones to their girls, until it was made mandatory by the school. Patel shared that parents are more worried about the rising exposure of girls to online friendship, as cases of online harassment, stalking has drastically increased.

A psychiatrist, Dr Hansal Bhachech opined that screen addiction shot up three to four folds across the age group due to lockdown. Another psychiatrist revealed that parents blame mobile phones for the elopement of girls or their undesirable relationships. Parents were made to understand that neither the gender of the child or the mobile phone is to be blamed. What is important, is to teach the children were to put a full stop in their lured digital world.

It was noted that phone addiction among young children led to mood swings and changes in real-life relationships. Experts advise that parents and teachers should educate young users about setting mobile phone usage limits. On the other hand, girls and boys should be educated to not get emotionally dependent on virtual relationships or use them as an escape from real life.

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