Excessive YouTube viewing isolates children from social life!

Today, as a social media ban for those under 16 is being discussed, experts point out that children cannot be separated from social media, and what matters is how children use digital communication tools. They remind that parents have certain responsibilities for children to benefit from YouTube, for example, and to be protected from harmful content. They emphasize that cybersecurity opportunities can be utilized on digital platforms with the family profile feature. 

Dr. Pınar Demir Asma, Assistant Head of the Child Development Department at Üsküdar Üniversitesi Faculty of Health Sciences, issued important warnings regarding the effects of YouTube content on children's development.

YouTube has both positive and negative effects on children

Stating that it is not possible to think of children separately from social media in the digital age we live in, Dr. Pınar Demir Asma said, “YouTube attracts children's attention because it is an alternative to television. In addition, it paves the way for children to produce their own content. As an accessible alternative, YouTube affects a child's development positively or negatively in many ways. How this effect will manifest can be ensured through healthy YouTube usage habits and proper parental guidance.”

The presence of personal information can create an environment vulnerable to child abuse

Dr. Pınar Demir Asma explained that these contents can negatively affect children's social-emotional development for reasons such as encouraging adolescents to risky behaviors like alcohol, smoking, and self-harm; learning aggression and aggressive behaviors through role models on YouTube; creating an environment vulnerable to child abuse due to the presence of both audio-video and personal information on children's YouTube channels; and presenting inappropriate role models in terms of societal norms as attractive.

Problems related to attention, sustained attention, and focus can be observed!

Pointing out that infancy and early childhood are the most sensitive periods for brain development, Dr. Pınar Demir Asma said, “During this period, the most important needs for a child are an environment rich in stimuli and social interaction. Social media platforms like YouTube, by offering a passive and inactive experience away from interaction, can negatively affect cognitive and language development. These effects can particularly be observed as problems in self-regulation skills, delays in receptive and expressive language skills, and problems related to attention, sustained attention, and focus.”

It can isolate children from social life

Dr. Pınar Demir Asma also noted that participating in social interactions develops a child's skills related to interacting with others, stating, “Excessive viewing of YouTube content can isolate a child from social life. Furthermore, it can restrict a child's imagination with the ready-made content it offers in situations where the child needs to use their own imagination.” 

There are also positive effects

Dr. Asma also stated that when healthy parental guidance is provided, YouTube content has several positive effects on children, saying, “These include providing children with the opportunity to access any information they want to learn and remember, anytime; creating a social environment for peers and friends; offering an economical alternative for social activities like TV series and movies; and providing access to more information regarding hobbies and interests.”

Cybersecurity opportunities should be utilized with the family profile feature

Noting that what is important, given that children cannot be thought of separately from social media today, is how children use digital communication tools, Dr. Pınar Demir Asma concluded her words as follows:

“Parents have certain responsibilities for children to benefit from YouTube and to be protected from harmful content. Primarily, parents themselves should set an example as conscious YouTube users; YouTube should be watched in common areas where adults can monitor; children should be taught the ability to distinguish between good and bad, right and wrong videos and to reason; if possible, YouTube should be used with the child profile feature; passwords should be set for objectionable videos and content; cybersecurity opportunities should be utilized with the family profile feature; videos that children cannot access should be identified; while providing freedom to the child, the time spent on YouTube should be limited and recorded; the child should be warned to be careful when disclosing personal information, and the child's YouTube usage habits should be observed.”