Expressing his concerns about the use of children on social media, Psychiatrist Prof. Nevzat Tarhan stated that using a child not for developmental purposes but merely for display is defined as “exhibitionism,” and that this constitutes a psychological perversion. Prof. Tarhan said: “In my opinion, such cases should be examined within the scope of ‘child abuse.’ In such a situation, whether it constitutes child abuse would be determined by an expert. If it does, there would be warning penalties or monetary fines.”
Prof. Tarhan emphasized: “A child is not merchandise, not a marketing tool. An approach that commodifies a child is inhumane.”
President of Üsküdar University, Psychiatrist Prof. Nevzat Tarhan, evaluated the issue of content centered around children.
Social media posts are perceived as normal by children
Prof. Tarhan stated that in children’s posts on social media, the way the parents share and the child’s age group are determining factors: “On special days, posts related to matters meaningful for the child’s developing psyche can have a positive impact. However, posts that become routine, such as ‘pose to the right, pose to the left,’ especially for children aged 0–6 whose abstract thinking skills have not yet developed, are perceived as if they are normal behaviors in life.”
Pointing out that during this period parents are the child’s heroes and role models, Prof. Tarhan said: “The child learns to be limitless and unquestioning when it comes to self-display. This is one of the most important illnesses of our age. Such individuals become potential candidates for psychiatric clinics and aesthetic surgery, and most of them are not happy.”
These posts can lead children toward a self-centered life
Prof. Tarhan noted that such posts instill in children a false perception of worth such as: “If your physical appearance is good, you are valuable; if you exist on social media, you are valuable.” This, he said, directs the child toward a consumable, superficial, and self-centered life: “The child ends up living a consumable life. Instead of a life with deep relationships, cooperation, sharing, empathy, and respect, it becomes a life of superficiality, self-display, and egocentrism. Children who start off this way at a young age become candidates for narcissistic personality disorder in the future. Narcissistic personality disorder is currently the biggest cause of depression, suicide, and substance abuse. In this way, children at risk are being raised. Using children in the media as marketing material, as if they were commodities for purchase, damages the developing psyche of children.”
The child thinks: “My parents are doing this for others”
Drawing attention to how seemingly innocent children’s videos may cause deep psychological problems later on, Prof. Tarhan said: “After a while, the child begins to think: ‘My mother and father are not doing this for me. They are doing it to show others.’ When they realize this, the mother-child relationship deteriorates. Right now, parents have a fetish for self-display. There is a fetish for visibility.”
Noting that the parents’ mindset of “I exist as long as I am visible” leads children to a sense of insatiability for praise and approval, Prof. Tarhan added: “A child who grows up with insatiability for praise and approval will become dependent on others later in life. This is the greatest weakness of the narcissistic personality. This weakness attracts hypocritical and manipulative people around them. Such children grow up to be individuals who are easily manipulated and deceived. Just like fraudsters and salespeople who first approach with praise and then trap people, these children also become defenseless against praise.”
Social media addiction as a “behavioral addiction”
Defining social media addiction as a “behavioral addiction,” Prof. Tarhan said: “All the criteria of substance addiction can be seen here: using more than planned, feeling bad without it, disrupting daily life, and harmful use. Replace the substance with social media, and it’s the same thing. Just as drugs disrupt the brain’s reward system, social media disrupts it just as much.”
He further noted that social media platforms have established “persuasion laboratories” and operate with the motto “Our only rival is sleep.” Prof. Tarhan stated that these platforms turn people into objects rather than subjects, and that parents, without realizing it, teach their children how to be “used.”
“This is child abuse, there is a legal gap”
Prof. Tarhan stated that families who share images of their children are taking a great risk, emphasizing that this situation can lead to child abuse: “When the child grows up and asks, ‘Mom, Dad, why did you share this?’ this becomes child abuse. At present, there is a legal gap on this matter. Social media is not acting ethically; it only creates ethical rules after negative consequences are seen, but in the meantime, an entire generation is being lost.”
“Don’t turn your child into a media monkey”
Prof. Tarhan noted that families are turning their children into “media monkeys” on social media, causing great harm to the child’s developing psyche: “This may sound harsh, but families are turning their children into media monkeys. They become children who everyone plays with, laughs at, and finds amusing when looked at. The child has no consent in this. Parents cannot make decisions on behalf of the child.”
He also stressed that children who become famous at an early age end up unhappy later in life and suffer mood disorders: “These families increase the likelihood of their children developing bipolar disorder because they cannot teach the child emotion regulation. These children are in the risk group for narcissistic personality disorder and mood disorders.”
Sharing the most private and intimate is a kind of psychological perversion!
Expressing his concerns about the use of children on social media, Prof. Nevzat Tarhan said that the main motivation behind such parental actions is “to be visible” and “to gain points.” He explained that using a child not for developmental purposes but merely for display is defined as “exhibitionism” and constitutes psychological perversion: “Sharing one’s most private, most intimate aspects with society is considered a kind of psychological perversion. If this is done continuously and becomes a lifestyle, it is very dangerous. In my opinion, such cases should be examined within the scope of ‘child abuse.’ Parents have no right to demean their children to this extent. In such a case, whether it constitutes child abuse is examined by an expert. If it is child abuse, there are warning penalties and monetary fines. There is always a sanction. Parents with true parental maturity would not do such things. Here, there is no parental maturity, only ego gratification or self-interest. It is about gaining profit through the child, using the child as a display case, seeing the child as a commercial material, a commodity. But a child is not merchandise, not a marketing tool. An approach that commodifies a child is inhumane. Commodifying and commercializing a child under 18 are already unethical.”
For a child, abuse means the violation of privacy
Prof. Tarhan pointed out that moderate approaches, such as family photos taken with children or social media shares that are thought to contribute positively to the child’s life, can be considered innocent: “Parents sharing warm moments with adolescents has a positive effect on their developing psyche. Sharing moments when they chat together or travel together is beneficial as long as it is not exaggerated. But one must be cautious about exaggerated content or content that gives the wrong message. That is when the situation turns into abuse and damages privacy. For a child, abuse means the violation of privacy.”
Üsküdar News Agency (ÜNA)