SOS: Children - teens addicted to the Internet

The internet is a new big field of action. A parallel world, through which endless possibilities are offered to users. At the same time, however, the use of the internet carries a number of serious risks. Especially for underage users, who can easily fall victim to cybercriminals. Cybercrime, in all its forms, is constantly evolving beyond the traditional forms of crime. Cyberbullying invades our home at all times and can cause even more serious problems than the traditional form of violence. Minor users are particularly vulnerable and the role of parents is particularly important in protecting their children.

According to the conclusions of the "University of Monday" organized by the European University of Cyprus, on "Limits and dependencies on the Internet - Guidelines for parents and children", it appears that the use of the Internet in Cyprus by minors is widespread. In fact, the percentage of children who have a profile on a social networking site, such as Facebook, is higher in Cyprus than in other European countries. Particularly important and worrying, from the data presented, is the fact that ignorance is recorded by Cypriot parents about the dangers of the internet, but also about the action of their children in it. In the context of the presentation, the main speaker was Mr. Evmorfia Koukia, assistant Professor of Psychiatric Nursing at the School of Health Sciences of the Department of Nursing at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. Intervention was also made by Mrs. Maria Prodromou, nurse, M.Sc, Ph.D. (c) and PhD candidate of the School of Health Sciences of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and addiction counselor at the Center for Multiple Intervention of Psychiatric Services. As mentioned, more than 2 billion users are connected to the internet every day and a significant percentage concerns children and adolescents.

Teenagers and children can engage in social networking sites (Facebook, chatrooms), online games, but also face online gambling and cyberbullying. Online role-playing games are games with a specific plot, in which players take on character roles, take part in missions, fights and battles without ever meeting their teammates.

The fact that social networking sites attract a large number of children and teenagers was particularly emphasized. Facebook alone has 890 million active daily users, as of December 2014. The data entered may include personal information such as name, address, phone number, e-mail, school, sports venues and entertainment. They often "upload" photos and personal information to the profile.The main dangers that a child and adolescent may face are:

>> Cyber-bullying, which involves sending unsolicited messages (abusive-offensive), defamation or teasing to third parties, via e-mail, mobile messages, photos and videos on the internet, websites, chatrooms, posting nasty photos or messages to others on blogs or other websites. Also use the foreign user name in order to spread rumors and lies about a third party (identity theft) and create websites that target specific people by calling others to post hate messages. >> Sexting: is the exchange of messages and photos of sexual content via mobile phone or instant messenger. >> Grooming, where an adult communicates with the minor user and pretends to approach and seduce the minor.

>> Electronic gambling is about games and sports, where people can bet on the result. Also online casinos that include games similar to traditional casinos, such as roulette, black jack, poker and websites related to trade, sales and transactions. According to the Cyprus Center for Safe Internet, whose data were presented, 7 out of 10 children have profiles on Facebook compared to 6 out of 10 children in Europe. Specifically, 4 out of 10 children who are addicted to the internet in Cyprus are between the ages of 9-10, while in Europe 7 out of 10 children are between the same ages. Adolescents in Cyprus appear to have their profiles locked to a large extent compared to adolescents in Europe. 40% of children in Cyprus make excessive use of the internet compared to 30% in Europe. 23% of children state that they "wander" on the internet without actually being interested or looking for something specific. In addition, we are at the top as a country in terms of the number of computers and "smart" phones.It causes addiction and addiction

According to the data submitted, over-employment on the internet can lead to addiction. Common symptoms of people with internet addiction disorder are attachment to it, the need for ever-increasing connection time to achieve the desired satisfaction result, as well as repeated attempts to control its use and the presence of depression or Depression of mood with restriction of use. At the same time, the person stays connected longer than originally planned, runs the risk of not completing their work due to use, and often makes false statements about real-time use, resulting in the child experiencing dysfunction in all areas of life and of his daily life.The effects of addiction can affect the following areas:

>> Social, psychological and professional discount
>> Mood disorders, depressed mood, aggression, anxiety, loneliness
>> Sleep
>> Extracurricular activities
>> Social isolation
>> Academic failure
>> Occupational and financial problems, dismissal. At the same time, as mentioned, research shows that:
* in China 10,8% of people aged 13-18 have moderate to severe internet dependence,
in Korea 10,7% of adults and
* in Greece 70,9% of adults who have access to the internet. In Greece 70% -80% of people aged 12-18 are internet users, with 8,2% having an incidence of internet addiction, of which 6,2% are boys and 2% girls, while in Norway 1,98% among teens are addicted to the internet, 5,4% in Italy and 1,6% in South Korea.Annoying messages

The lecture also presented data from the Office for Combating Cybercrime in Cyprus, according to which in Cyprus there are lower rates of harassment and intimidation, but more frequent presence of annoying messages, code theft and the presence of messages that promote hatred, racism, and bulimia. Statistics show that 85% of children have received help or mediation from teachers. The usual dangers that occur in social networking sites in Cyprus are the fact that children do not have the necessary skills for safe, but also the general correct use of the internet and at the same time waste more time using the internet than other Europeans. As for the reasons that usually lead a child to internet addiction, it is among other things the fact that he feels important through the internet and less important in the real world, acquires value, feels a winner, gets positive emotions and reward, is a challenge for the same and expects that it will change his day and his mood. At the same time, he feels that the internet is the best place available and in fact it is a place of freedom and opportunity for himself, to the extent that children end up using the internet as a means of escape, very often showing lack of limits and control and as a consequence of all this In addition, lack of communication, conflict and the presence of domestic violence are often the main causes of children becoming addicted to the internet and gradually leading to social isolation and loss of connection with the real family. life showing to a large extent the absence of activity and active participation in family life.Cypriot parents are unaware of the online danger

A particularly important parameter mentioned is that parents in Cyprus are unaware of the degree of danger of using the internet with a percentage of 30% being ignorant of their child's involvement in sexually explicit pages, 56% are unaware that children have receive harmful messages and 52% are unaware of sexually explicit messages exchanged or received by their children. The fact that educating and informing parents is the cornerstone of children's healthy development was particularly emphasized. Providing knowledge about what internet addiction is and what it is not, what is safe internet use, as well as the positive and negative effects of use is one of the important factors on the one hand. On the other hand, setting common goals with the child, spending time with them, are the components that connect the family and help build a relationship with them. It is especially important for parents to learn to read some signs in their child's behavior , which can warn them of some dangers. For example, that their child is addicted to the internet. Specifically, such warning signs are: >> Internet obsession
>> Lies or concealment of the preoccupation
>> Lack of interest in other activities
>> Disobedience to time constraints
>> Social withdrawal
>> Using and continuing games as an escape despite the consequences. At the same time, parents should give the following advice to their children to learn to protect themselves, such as sharing with their parents or anyone who trusts the fact, not to respond. to intimidate, to electronically block the perpetrator, to keep copies, to pay attention to their personal data and any passwords and not to respond aggressively to the perpetrator.Regarding parents:

>> Prefer to place their PC in places such as the living room and not in bedrooms.
>> Making Internet browsing a family activity.
>> To inform their children about the dangers that exist when talking to strangers through chatrooms.
>> Discuss safety issues with their children (contact with dangerous people, access to sites with harmful content).
>> Teach their children not to give out personal information without their permission (last name, first name, age, home address, phone number, family income, even school hours, friends' names, etc.) and not to use their card .
>> Never allow their children to meet people they have met online.
>> To use the so-called "filters" which are special software products in order to prevent access to unwanted sites (violence, pornography). As mentioned in the workshop, questions such as where to stop or start control by parents, where the freedom, where the responsibility of their children, what is the golden section between them and what is the balance between these concepts, very often concern the parents. Differentiating the role of parents depending on the level of age development of the child is important and necessary. At the same time, the adoption of a safe environment and the common policy by both parents, as well as the strengthening of children with solid foundations so that they can manage both their freedom and their responsibility constructively are elements that help children. to grow through the experience that their actions have positive or negative consequences and put them in a more advantageous position when it comes time to say no to addiction in general.Source: FILELEFTHEROS