Today’s society is constantly changing and technology plays a fundamental role in our lives since childhood. The “digital natives”, our children, use them with an ease that amazes their parents and with an intensity that makes many worry about addiction to screens and problems such as cyberbullying and cyberbullying.
Teaching them from a young age to make responsible use of technologies and establish minimum guidelines at home is essential to avoid any of these problems and ensure that children benefit from the advantages of video games.
- Check what your child plays
The games you use should be practical and as varied as possible so that they receive different stimuli: that they teach you history, that they have some social / cooperative component, that include puzzles that stimulate your intelligence, that have a rich script, etc. Learn about age and content type rating systems, such as PEGI, and find out if the game includes online components, microtransactions, and other factors to take into account when assessing whether it is appropriate or not. If the game allows the creation of content by the players, it is important to know the rules indicated by the platform. Consulting forums, social networks and reading specialized reviews will allow you to know everything. And the ideal is that you play together so that he feels that you care, while you know what he spends his time playing.
- Safety first
Today video games offer one and a thousand possibilities of interactivity: online games , chats to share tricks and experiences, extra paid content to learn about other game possibilities … It is advisable to create the account together and choose platforms that have registration systems by age and security codes for parents, as well as an access password. These codes are not necessary to enter and play or navigate, but they are necessary to make changes to the account. Regarding the messaging systems, It is convenient to opt for tools that allow parents to choose who can send messages to minors, who can chat with them in the application, or even disable chat.
- Control your time
The use of technology has come to occupy an important place in the daily lives of children and adolescents, and it is important to previously agree with them on the use of online gambling like Joker Game and watch for signs of dependency. As INCIBE checks daily from the IS4K Help Line (900 116 117), it is necessary to monitor symptoms of irritability and even anxiety at the idea of stopping gambling, as well as detect any change in behavior, abandonment of obligations or loss of interest in activities you used to like or meeting friends.
- Avoid predators
Technologies are full of good things, but they also hide people with bad intentions who can bother children who are on gaming platforms. Our children should look very cozy at this point and feel the confidence to go to their parents if they receive some kind of inappropriate request. Remind them not to share private data or photos and offer them trust and closeness so that they won’t hide anything from you.
- Beware of cyberbylling
It is a practice that can be found on online platforms, despite the fact that real-time human moderation and tools for automatic detection and blocking of inappropriate language are currently included. Again, it is essential to talk with the children about this type of behavior so that they know how to identify and report this type of abuse. It will be vital to be aware of all the mechanisms offered by the online game that your child plays to prevent this type of abuse, such as blocking certain users and the platform’s reporting systems , as well as requesting personalized advice in help services .
