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Effects Of Technology On Children

March 26, 2012 by · Comments Off on Effects Of Technology On Children 

Effects Of Technology On Children, An increasing number of top scientists and researchers are questioning the effects on children of spending excessive amounts of time using modern technology, particularly social networking websites and cellphone text messaging and their influence on the formation of basic skills of human interaction.

Neuroscientist Susan Greenfield of Oxford University detailed her concerns regarding social networking sites such as MySpace, Facebook and Twitter to the United Kingdom Parliament.

Baroness Greenfield said that while social networking websites give the user a feeling of acceptance, she worried that the activity distanced children “from the stress of face-to-face, real-life conversation.”

Online, children and teenagers can have hundreds of “friends” without having to leave their home or open their mouths.

“Real-life conversations,” Baroness Greenfield continued, “are, after all, far more perilous than those in the cyber world. They occur in real time, with no opportunity to think up clever or witty responses, and they require a sensitivity to voice tone, [and] body language ”

The worries do not stop with social networking sites. A recent study found that heavy Internet use may increase violent and aggressive behavior. The study, published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, documented the Internet use patterns of 9,405 Taiwanese teenagers. Researchers labeled 25 percent of males and 13 percent of females as Internet addicts. Among these, 37 percent reported aggressive behavior within the last year, compared to less than 23 percent for all teens.

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