Cutting-edge technologies brought a majority of new values in the last century. The problem is, these values are sometimes questioned by the past generations that rarely will to accept them. Consequently, modern children cannot comprehend the older people, whose childhood was drastically different. This essay will examine the issues that emerge in society and the family due to such a phenomenon.
Firstly, the main issue in society is that children no longer find outdoor activities exciting, often opting for playing online games. Instead of fishing, swimming, playing, developing as a person, they resort to doom-scrolling, to waste time in games that can be overly cruel. Moreover, children consume excessively large amount of information for their age, which could remarkably affect their psychosomatic wellbeing, being the root for a plethora of disorders and defects in the development. Undoubtedly, parents and grandparents are striving to prevent any sort of tragedy, imparting wise lessons and implementing stringent regulations. For instance, the study from Zurich University revealed in 2021 that those who had a smartphone from a young age, were likely to develop some mental disorders, such as depression, anxiety, low self-esteem. It inadvertently leads to another range of hardships that are linked to family relationships.
As mentioned, the older generations, do not understand new moral values that are now being implemented into our society, mostly be Gen-Z. Gender stereotypes, religion, abortion – all these are vigorously debated, which itself can seriously impact family relationships. Never before had this been discussed before the appearance of media technologies that prevail in the modern public. Apart from that, children spend less time with family, choosing to remain in virtual world. It is especially difficult, if an individual is going through puberty, for he needs support from his parents. To cite a case, a toll in the UK in 2024 indicated that parents are indeed struggling to find a connection with their children because of the amount of time they spend online. “That is the most complex part of the problem, even from a neurobiological side” – say Professors from Cambridge University, that learned the patterns of modern children’s behaviour.
To conclude, while the life of the immature ones is substantially different, technologies are causing issues both in society and in the institution of family. Diseases, disorders, conflicts – all of it can be the output of overusing technologies, therefore it requires attention.