Are ‘Digital Nannies’ the solution?

We live in a world where the digitalization of our lives has progressed at a breakneck pace. This digital development has required us to strike a balance between using these innovations to improve our lives and addressing the possible dire consequences over time.

Educating oneself and putting our heads around the effort needed to achieve a balance in the middle of this paradox continues even as adults. Nevertheless, many of us are responsible for the education and upbringing of our children. To be a good parent today means preparing our children with critical thinking skills and emotional strength so that they can distinguish between actions that will benefit them and those that will harm them.

Additionally, we must keep in mind that we are dealing with a pandemic with both short- and long-term consequences for individuals, parents, and children. How can we accomplish this in a world of hyper-digital advancements, where the pandemic sparks hyper-digital advances? In today’s world, we all rely on one another to help us get through our shared and unique paths.

Since social media, portable gadgets, and instant content are widely available, children today are more likely to suffer from depression, anxiety, fear, and isolation even from an early age. While technology was supposed to foster closer bonds, it has instead encouraged distance. Thus, parents have become challenged in connecting with their children, which affects the harmony between them and their children. I find it curious that although everything has become more connected, we are becoming more segregated.

There is a high likelihood of a mental health epidemic becoming the next pandemic. However, technology is neither to blame for our current state of affairs nor for what is expected in the future. There are many factors at play here. It is widely acknowledged that excessive use of technology affects children and teenagers from numerous studies and data published in prestigious publications. It has been seen that the use of digital gadgets reduces creativity and attention.

As a result of games, apps, movies, social media, and other sources, children are exposed to potentially harmful content at early age. In recent years, there has been a drastic increase in the number of erotic predators targeting children online, leading the next generation down a rabbit hole of hopelessness. Agitation, hyperactivity, loneliness, or wariness are common symptoms, making it difficult for parents to watch, assist, and connect with their children. Parenting can be challenging when kids are exposed to harmful and inappropriate content on the internet. In addition, children’s needs are changing dramatically due to the digital age. They are affected by their peers and want portable gadgets, games, and applications. On the other hand, children’s demands are more likely to be a consequence than a cause.

Parents are finding it more challenging to strike a balance in their everyday life, which is why they frequently hire “digital nannies” to keep their children occupied while they complete work, go grocery shopping, or divert them during feeding times. The issue is most likely not the devices themselves but the amount to which they are used. Both the children and the parents benefit from setting limits and developing a disciplinarian parenting style. When parents make a rule, children must understand that they should anticipate good behaviors and penalties for reactive and improper behavior.

The science of parenting supports the use of a commanding parenting style. Children raised by such parents are more likely to grow up to be responsible and confident in expressing their views. Positive role-modeling can help a youngster who is naturally curious and imitates the adults around him. Healthy talks and quality family time are vital components of parenting, particularly in today’s digital world. Several factors have an impact on parenting methods. To regulate and manage their children’s behavior, each parent and family use various ways referred to as parenting styles. Changing socio-economic conditions, cultural and religious traditions and variations, personal qualities, psychological issues, and exposure to the digital world can affect parenting approaches. Parenting methods vary significantly and may have various effects and results on a child’s intellect, heart, and behavior, each of which can leave a lasting mark on the child’s life.

Values and ideas that maintain the common good, discipline, and morality must be the foundation of contemporary civilization. Some of the most critical contacts a kid has in early life are with their parents and the learning environment of the school and the surrounding community. As a result, a society’s intrinsic values must be upheld to maintain education, health, parenting, and societal standards of behavior. For each individual’s personal and more extensive welfare, parenting is a duty that must be taught, respected, and practiced. To shape the structure of society and encourage healthy parenting, a spectrum of responsible caring and professional services is necessary.

The discussion should be on balancing and extracting value from research, communication, and collaborative action in the digital era. If a kid encounters unusual contents on the internet, they should confide in their parents and seek advice on responding. Parents may turn their children’s digital encounters into learning opportunities by employing techniques that maximize the benefits while minimizing the risks. For apps that are not age-appropriate, parents must know how to set up parental locks and passwords. To maintain a balance between the usage of gadgets and their duration can be tracked. Parents may also connect with their children while using digital devices to set an example, interact with the material, and discuss the importance of learning, exploring, and interacting with the world through gadgets. The fundamental issue is to see children as active citizens in the digital era who will utilize technology and the internet to shape their world ideas.

Legislation and regulations must provide a framework that includes infrastructure for health, safety, and education, as well as policies that empower families and children to gain sustainable income and stability. As a result, in today’s hectic contemporary world, family programmes and activities are in great demand. We now have to choose to take this issue seriously and to become less dependent on digital devices.

The writer is a public relations professional