Published on 12, July, 2020
I see that goverment are seriously thinking of banning smart phones and social media for under 16's.
Do you think its a good idea?
What are the positives and negatives of such a ban?
Would it work?
Would people binge on their 16th birthday?
How would verification work, what form should or would it take?
I feel mixed personally I think the stuff people can see from such a young age is shocking, or for someone of any age for that matter! But there are positives too, if you live somewhere rural and can be a few miles away from where your friends live or you have close family a way away from you, then social media must be great.
Personally I'm quite anti-social and curmudgeonly and dont' use it or a smart phone, I don't do groups etc, but if I feel mixed about it then I think young people must be really confused, and probably angry and frightened too.
I don't think the "rise" in mental health issues in young people are soley down to social media, when I worked as a young peoples counsellor it was at a shocking level then, the numbers of sucidal thoughts, self harm, eating disorders, bullyiing, abuse both in and out of the home, services were barely coping and that was long before austerity cuts took most services away. I think that issues with mental health are coming home to roost rather than increasing, I think they're just being recognised for the massive issue they are and have been for decades because they can no longer be ignored. I think banning social media is seen as a quick fix, another way for people to stick their heads in the sand in the hope that everything will get better.
I think giving under 16's fairly basic phones (without social media) is probably a better idea. Give them, I guess, a safer outlet to speak with their friends.
I think the whole debate needs more exploration so we can fully understand the pros and cons.
I agree that a dumb phone is a good idea for young people, I felt much better knowing my teenage daughter had a means of calling for help when she was out alone. Social media and smart phones hadn't been invented then and there was a similar hoo-ha about dumb phones.
I totally disagree that people should be children until the age of 21, it's way to late in my opinion, I think legal adulthood should start at 18. At 18 peopl could well be expected to use social media, such as whats-app groups fo work and educational purposes, to ban them from doing so would cause more harm that good.
I see that many agree with a ban, but I'd be interested to hear how you think it would work and if anyone thinks social media's a good thing?