In China, radical measures to protect young people addicted to screens

According to an official 2021 report, 24 million young Chinese are considered internet addicts.

China launches war to protect children addicted to cell phones and video games. Authorities are implementing some of the strictest measures in the world, such as blocking minors’ cell phones at night. This policy is debated in Chinese society.

In Beijing, in the Dongzhemen district, the young patients in the office of a child psychologist all have one thing in common: screen addiction. Doctor Chen Qiushi confirms : “Parents are very anxious because they can no longer control their children. This affects their lives and their studies, especially between the ages of 12 and 15. This can even lead some to drop out of school.”

“They do nothing but stare at screens and play games all the time. They have become addicted, like drug users.”

Chen Qiushi, child psychologist

at franceinfo

Families often find themselves helpless in the face of a phenomenon which is becoming more and more widespread in Chinese society. “My granddaughter played the game Mini World with my cell phone, it lasted three years since 2020, testifies this grandmother of a 10-year-old girl. Because of this game, she didn’t do well at school, her eyes are damaged and now she has to wear glasses.”

To deal with this worrying trend, the Chinese government has opted for strong action. The Cyberspace Administration unveiled a project last summer with a first radical measure : blocking cell phones for all minors from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. The daily connection time will also be limited, to 40 minutes for example for children under 8 years old. A project that goes in the right direction for this mother : “I support these measures, because around me, some children hide under the blanket in the evening and use the screen very late. The next day they are tired at school. I think these measures will be appropriate. We must limit the time spent on video games. This will contribute to the physical and mental health of young people. I also find that schools must reduce the use of screens.”

Useful and effective regulation?

Psychologist Chen Qiushi nuances the effects of this very strict regulation : “Forced measures lead to a state of obligatory acceptance. But this does not help the child to manage his emotions and it does not solve screen addiction. I think we need to address the problem on its merits. If we consider the screen as a very close person and suddenly that person no longer exists, support is needed to cope with this separation.”

The most hostile to these cell phone bans are teenagers. At the end of a high school in Beijing, the students do not seem convinced. “I spend a lot of time online, more than twelve hours per day on weekends, five hours a day during the week, only for watching videos and cartoonstestifies a 17-year-old high school student years. It’s an essential part of my life. And if it’s forbidden, anyway, I’ll find other solutions. I used my parents’ ID card to log in before. I am against these measures. Without internet, I can’t live”, she says. “I do not agree, completes one of his comrades, I don’t want to change my habits because of this policy.”

“Screens are an inevitable thing in this day and age.”

a high school student from Beijing

at franceinfo

One of their classmates, 16 years old, adds : “That they take care of their lives and not mine. At school, we have a lot of pressure and homework. We have little time to have fun. I watch short videos on my cell phone in the evening to have fun. If we reduce this leisure time, we will be depressed and this could increase the suicide rate.”

Some parents are also rather opposed to the announced measures. “These policies are redundantestimates a young father. If parents are afraid of their children becoming addicted to the Internet, they just need to control them. There is no need to put in place a global policy, when each child is a separate case. I’m not worried, my son works well and he can play as much as he wants. Why do I have to control it ?”

But the Chinese government intends to put in place all these anti-screen measures to protect its youth. According to an official 2021 report, 24 million young Chinese are considered internet addicts.