TikTok Documents Show Addiction Occurs in 35 Minutes
What? How long does it take to become addicted to TikTok’s short-form videos? According to information released in an ongoing suit by 13 attorneys general against the social media platform, TikTok’s internal answer to that question is 260 videos.
So What? How long does that take? Not very long at all. Kentucky’s Attorney General official said, “While this [number] may seem substantial, TikTok videos can be as short as 8 seconds and are played for viewers in rapid-fire succession, automatically. Thus, in under 35 minutes, an average user is likely to become addicted to the platform.”
Now What? The lawsuit against TikTok alleges that the social media company not only knows the risks to young users, but actively targets young users with features that keeps them constantly engaged. Regardless of the threshold at which someone is or isn’t addicted, families must reckon with the reality that compulsive engagement habits aren’t formed in weeks or days, but possibly in minutes.
Four Hours of Screentime Daily Linked to Higher Teen Depression and Anxiety
What? A new study by the National Center for Health Services suggests that four or more hours of daily screen use by teens correlates with a higher incidence of depression and anxiety.
So What? For more than a decade, concerned social scientists have hypothesized that excessive screen-time and social media use strongly correlate with mental health problems among adolescents. Each new study reinforces a growing consensus among researchers that social media’s adverse effects among young users merit serious attention.
Now What? We hear lots of news about rising rates of anxiety and depression among our kids. But we may not automatically recognize those issues when they begin to emerge. Focus on the Family’s Parenting ministry can help you identify what teen depressions looks like and begin to take action to help your adolescents in this area as well.
Australia Mulls Under-16 Social Media Ban
What? Governments worldwide are grappling with how to protect kids and help families deal with the ubiquitous issue of too much screen time. Australian lawmakers are hearing from both parents and tech companies as they consider an under-16 ban on social media for all teens.
So What? Advocates of the ban believe that if Australia enacted this law, it would make it easier for parents to enforce social media limitations in their families. Anthea Dare, an advocate for the organization Heads Up Alliance, said, “It’s actually a signal to parents to say, it’s OK to say no. If both parents are working and are stressed out, trying to put your mind to having this battle with this persistent middle-schooler is really hard.”
Now What? While lawmakers around the world ponder stricter social media use policies, the reality is that individual families are where limits, boundaries and habits are shaped and formed. What parameters do you have in place for your family members? Do you need to revisit or reset those “house rules” when it comes to smartphone and social media use? As much as this is often framed as an issue for our kids, our perspective, habits and discipline as parents likely remains the most important influence when it comes to our kids’ interaction with screens.
The post On the Radar: Addicted to TikTok in 35 Minutes, The Screen-Time/Anxiety Tipping Point, Oz Mulls appeared first on Plugged In.
