Another “emergency situation” Children's internet dependence / game disorders

Another “emergency situation” Children's internet dependence / game failure January 28, 10:42

"I was playing games for 20 hours a day."

"I can't control it myself, so I want my parents to stop."

These are the words of the children I met during the interview.

"Internet dependence" and "game obstacles" that are absorbed in online games and SNS.

The danger has been pointed out for some time, but the number of children who are becoming more addicted to the corona virus is increasing rapidly.

As the living environment of children changes drastically due to school closures, it is becoming an “emergency situation”.

I think there are many households that have an idea.

I need parental help before it's too late.

(Network Press Department Reporter Mayi Ogura, Kayoko Tamaki)

The lie was revealed

last summer.

Suddenly, a mother came in when Susumu (a pseudonym, 17 years old), a second-year high school student, was absorbed in an online game event in her room.

"What are you going to break your promise?"

It was an "unannounced inspection" by my mother Yoko (a pseudonym, 45 years old).

It was a promise that the tablet would only be used in the living room so that Susumu could concentrate on his studies.

More than 10 types of online games such as mahjong games were downloaded to the tablet.

It was the moment when Susumu's lie was revealed.

"What happened to your studies?"

Yoko felt angry.

Even after the school was closed due to the state of emergency last year and classes were resumed, Susumu used to cheat the time when the cram school was over and went to the arcade and lived a life of spending all his time playing online games until late at night.

An online game that fills the void of school closure

When I think about it now, I have all the conditions to be absorbed in the game.

Before Corona, I belonged to the baseball club and was busy studying and club activities.

However, it changed completely due to "new daily life".

The days when club activities are suspended due to the simultaneous closure of schools and even online classes are not held.

Online games filled the gaps in my spare time.

Susumu

"To be honest, I was confused about my life without school. But if my classmates played a game, I could connect and play even when the school was closed, and I was lonely."

Susumu was particularly enthusiastic about online mahjong games.

A cute character will appear and develop according to the light sound and voice.

What appealed to me was the scores and rankings that came out after each game.

Events that determine rankings are also held frequently.

Sometimes I found an event, applied for it, and spent seven hours a day.

Record the screen of the game when you get a high score with a screenshot.

I was enthusiastic about sending the image to my friends on LINE and bragging about each other, and I noticed that it was past 2 o'clock in the middle of the night.

Susumu:

"I want to have an advantage over my friends, and I feel like I don't want to lose. When I say something amazing, I feel superior. I can't do this in studying. If I win, I want to do more. If I lose, I lose and I have to return the ranking, and even if I think it's bad, I want to do it only once. When I noticed, I was thinking only about the game and to secure time for the game I had no choice but to reduce my sleep time and study time. "

The game is a common language

Even when school was reopened, games were still a part of life.

Susumu's school is a preparatory school, and you can bring your smartphone freely and use it during class.

Contact with schools and club activities is also LINE.

It was a daily occurrence that people talked about their favorite games and strategies at school.

Susumu used to go to school with a prize "amulet for schoolwork" that the top ranking players in the game could get, and used it as a starting point for the topic.

I thought that I wouldn't even be able to join the circle of friends without the "common language" of games, and at the same time I began to feel impatient.

"Because I depend on the internet ..."

When her mother, Yoko, was a student, she was so absorbed in the game that she couldn't study.

While I was hurt by my son's "betrayal", I also felt that I could understand the appeal of the game where self-control would not work.

However, I was worried that the current game could not be stopped because it can be enjoyed online at any time and place on a smartphone or the like.

That worry became a reality, and Susumu applied for a game event even after the lie was revealed and strongly scolded.

In addition, instead of the tablet I picked up, I was supposed to hide the computer in my father's room.

Susumu, who was confronted with that fact, said that he answered Yoko, "I am dependent on the Internet."

Yoko intensified her sense of crisis that she had to do something to protect her son's future.

Keyword "Internet addiction and game obstacles"

I am absorbed in online games, SNS, videos on the Internet, etc., and I feel that I am having problems with my daily life and health, but I cannot stop myself.

According to a 2017 national census, an estimated 930,000 people, 12.4% of junior high school students and 16% of high school students, were suspected of being "Internet-dependent."

In 2019, WHO = World Health Organization recognized the illness of "game disorder" as a symptom that affects the urge to play games, such as deterioration of academic ability and physical strength, and sleep disorder due to night-night reversal.

Yoko started a parent-child dialogue.

Although I sometimes scolded him with a fierce tone, I gradually returned to my original life by gradually reducing the time of the game and sharing each other's honest feelings.

Susumu:

At first, I thought that the game was my own world and didn't bother anyone, but I realized that I had given too much priority to the fun of the immediate future and had been lying and hurt my family. I thought I had to change so as not to hurt my family. "

1 million yen for game billing!

??

Susumu's experience is not a special case.

Last fall, Osaka Prefecture surveyed about 20,000 children and students from the 4th grade of elementary school to the 3rd grade of high school about their Internet usage.

As a result, the number of children suspected of being "online dependent" increased in all grades.

In particular, high school students reached nearly 30%, and male students almost doubled from the previous year.

("Net dependence check test" is posted at the end of the article)

The results of the survey were reported at the "Smartphone Summit" event held in Osaka last December.

It is held every year with the participation of junior and senior high school students and parents in the prefecture to think about children's "Internet dependence".

The situation was changing drastically due to the corona disaster.

"I've played games for 20 hours a day."

"

I've never been

closed in Corona

."

"I

heard that some children spent about 1 million yen on game charges."

The children talked about the fact that the use of the Internet could not be stopped.

On a serious stage

What surprised the event organizers was that the children called for their parents' help.

"I also have a dependency that I can't

stop, so I

want my parents to limit the parts that I can't limit myself

." "I think I can definitely stop if I force them to stop."

There were a series of remarks that were not before Corona.

Kazuo Takeuchi, Associate Professor, University of Hyogo

"Before Corona, children said,'Because you think for yourself, leave adults alone.' Now,'Because we can't do it alone, please cooperate with adults.'" I felt that the children had a sense of crisis more than I expected. "

He points out that when dealing with children, it is necessary to abandon the common sense of the parents' generation.

Associate Professor Kazuo Takeuchi, University of Hyogo

"Parents think of the" real world "and the" net world "separately, but today's children perceive the net as a real world. We have relationships in both worlds. We have to think about how to interact with children who live in a world different from adults. "

It's been a year since the school was closed by Corona.

Mr. Takeuchi has urged urgent measures, saying that the dependence on the Internet will become serious if it continues for more than a year, and there is a risk that it will not be possible to go back.

According to the "Kurihama Medical Center" in Kanagawa Prefecture, which provides specialized treatment for internet dependence, the time to connect to the internet and games has increased due to the school closure measures, and the number of patients whose symptoms have worsened is increasing.

It is said that when the condition worsens, there are many cases in which the family is mentally forced to go to school, violence against the family or hinting at suicide.

What should parents do

How do you deal with your child before it's too late?

The number of parents who have anxiety is increasing.

"When I pick up a game from a child, I rant and violence."

"My life has been reversed day and night and I can't go to school."

This is the voice of a guardian sent to clinical psychologist Saya Moriyama.

We provide online-dependent counseling and support, and the number of consultations has doubled compared to before Corona.

At the online lecture for parents of elementary school students in Mitaka City, Tokyo, Mr. Moriyama emphasized the importance of parents first knowing the actual situation of the Internet and games.

Clinical psychologist Saya Moriyama

"There are many parents who think that the game is evil and scold it excessively or pick up the game unilaterally. Children think that they do not understand themselves. Parents are in a vicious circle of increasing concern by hiding and playing games and lying. The first step in building a relationship of trust with a child is for parents to know the world of the internet and games. It's a step. "

Moriyama says that the shortcut is to ask the child about the game first.

In order to get to know the world of children, I advised that watching live video of the game would also be a chance for conversation.

Clinical psychologist Saya Moriyama

"In Corona, you can connect with friends you can't meet at school and play games together. In the world of internet and games, your friends are paying attention and saying" It's amazing ". Approval needs are met. While there are benefits, it is also the background to deepening dependence. "

What are the points of countermeasures?

He taught me the key points when dealing with children at home.

1 Discuss with your child and create rules for usage time.

2 Take a resolute attitude if you cannot keep the set time.

3 Provide an opportunity to review the rules on a regular basis and operate in a realistic manner.

Clinical psychologist Saya Moriyama

"It is not a problem that children can solve with their spirit and guts. Instead of imposing the opinions of their parents, first listen to their thoughts. I affirm that they spoke without denying. Sympathy is important, and while confirming the child's conviction, devise rules so that you can participate as proactively as possible. "

Even so, many parents are worried about children who are having difficulty quitting games.

Mr. Moriyama advised that children can feel the benefits of observing the rules by complimenting them if they can follow the rules and setting rewards such as snacks.

It is also important to utilize a function called "parental control" that limits the functions and usage of game consoles and smartphones, and to look for something that parents and children can enjoy away from the world of the Internet.

Making rules at school

It's not just homes that need to take action.

As it becomes commonplace for children to have smartphones and the country plans to distribute one tablet device to each elementary and junior high school student, there is an urgent need to create rules for using the Internet at schools.

In April of last year, Nose Elementary and Junior High School in Osaka allowed mobile phones to be brought in for contact in the event of a disaster, and established a rule called "Smartphone Oath Five Articles".

Smartphone Oath Five Articles

Article 1 Do not interact with strangers

Article 2

Do not

use from 10 pm to 7 am

Article 3 Do not use in school

Article 4

Do not

write bad words

Article 5 Sufficient when posting photos etc. on SNS Note!

!!

The junior high school students of the Student Organization led the rule making.

Instead of having the teacher decide and protect it unilaterally, it was left to the student's independence.

In an era where adults also learn together

Principal Katsutoshi Endo

"I thought I'd make a looser rule, but I'm impressed with the rule that is more precise and feasible than I thought. If there is a rule that I made, my friends will brake. I think it has become easier to use the system. Instead of the era of "don't have a smartphone", we will tell the children "how to use it and how to deal with it" together with teachers and parents. I think the time has come for adults to learn together. "

"Net-dependent" check test

You can easily check if you or your child are prone to "net dependence".

Please, try it.

If 5 or more are true, it means "net dependent state".

If it is 3 or more, it is a "net-dependent reserve force".

□ Q1 Do you feel crazy about the internet?

□ Q2 Do you feel that you have to spend more and more time using the internet to get satisfaction?

□ Q3 Have you often failed to limit your use of the internet, reduce your time, or stop using it altogether?

□ Q4 Do you feel restless, moody, depressed, or frustrated when you try to shorten the internet usage time or stop using it completely?

□ Q5 Have you been online for longer than you intended when you first started using it?

□ Q6 Have you ever ruined or jeopardized important relationships, school or club activities for the internet?

□ Q7 Have you ever lied to your family, school teachers or others to hide your over-enthusiasm on the internet?

□ Q8 Do you use the internet to escape from problems or to escape from unpleasant feelings such as despair, guilt, anxiety, and depression?

《Diagnosis Questionnaire (Young) Kurihama Medical Center Translation / Modification》