Scientists have discovered that adults’ desire to lead children deprives them of the independence they need.
A new study has found that children’s mental health worsens because they have fewer opportunities to play and do things on their own. The Week writes that although adults want to ensure children’s safety, not allowing them to be independent causes them anxiety, sadness, and even thoughts of harming themselves.
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Anxiety and depression are becoming more common among children and adolescents. This is a major problem that has been declared a state of emergency. There are many reasons why this is happening, but a new study says one of the main reasons is that kids don’t have as much opportunities to play and explore on their own as they used to. Adults want to keep children safe, but they can make them miserable by not giving them the freedom they need. It can cause anxiety, depression, and even suicidal thoughts.
The results of the study show that the increase in mental disorders is associated with decades of reduced opportunities for children and adolescents to play, navigate, and engage in activities that do not depend on direct adult supervision and control. Despite their good intentions, adults’ desire to guide and protect children and adolescents has deprived them of the autonomy they need for their mental health, which has contributed to record levels of anxiety, depression and suicide among youth.
“Parents today are regularly briefed on the dangers of unsupervised children and the value of being successful in school. But they rarely hear the counter message that children must continually increase their opportunities for development so that they can grow up to be well-adjusted.” Independent play, a sign that they are trusted, responsible and capable, and independent activities, including meaningful contributions to family and community life. They need to feel that they can deal effectively not only with school but also with the real world. David F. Björklund, PhD, is a faculty member and professor in the Department of Psychology at Florida Atlantic University’s Charles E. Schmidt College of Science.
The study also showed that children’s freedom to engage in activities that involve a degree of risk and personal responsibility away from adults has declined in recent years. Risky games like climbing a tall tree help protect children from developing phobias and increase self-confidence in emergencies by reducing their future anxiety levels.
Among the many limitations that affect the independent activities of today’s children identified in the study are the increased time they spend at school and the increase in homework. Thus, between 1950 and 2010, the average school year in the United States increased by five weeks. Homework, which used to be very rare or nonexistent in elementary school, is now commonplace even in kindergarten. Also, as of 2014, the average time spent in recess (including lunch breaks) in primary schools was just 26.9 minutes per day, and some schools had no recess at all.
“The main category of independent activities, especially for young children, is play. Research and daily observations show that play is a direct source of children’s happiness,” says Bjorklund.
Researchers suggest that decades of increased school time and academic pressure may have affected mental health; This is not only because it steals time and opportunities for independent study, but also because the fear of academic failure or failure is a direct source of distress. .
“Unlike other crises like the COVID pandemic, this decline in children’s independent activity and therefore in their mental health has been creeping up on us for decades, so most people hardly noticed it,” says Bjorklund. Unlike other health crises, this crisis is not the result of a highly active virus, but the result of good intentions that have gone too far – their intention to protect children and provide what many believe is a better education, both in and out of school.”
On the study, Björklund and co-authors Peter Gray, lead author and research professor in the Department of Psychology at Boston College, and David F. Lancey, professor emeritus in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Utah, summarize evidence for significant decades-long declines in children’s opportunities to act independently. ; significant decline in youth mental health in the same years; the effect of independent activity on the happiness of children; and the effect of independent activity on the formation of long-term psychological stability.
The article concludes that the concern for children’s safety and the value of adult guidance must be tempered by the recognition that as children grow, they need more and more opportunities to manage their own activities.
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