New study shows

The Corona pandemic has hit children and young people hard. Many suffer from loneliness or mental illness. They also spent more time on smartphones and PCs. According to a study, the proportion of those who play games or chat with ill health has also increased.

Pathological computer game behavior and social media addiction have increased among children and adolescents in the Corona pandemic, according to a study.

In a study commissioned by the DAK health insurance company, the German Center for Addiction Issues in Childhood and Adolescence (DZSKJ) concludes that more than four percent of ten- to 17-year-olds in Germany have so-called pathological usage behavior.

According to the study, in the area of computer games, the number of those affected with addictive behavior has increased from around 144,000 in 2019 to 219,000 this year, and in the use of social media platforms such as Tiktok, Snapchat, WhatsApp or Instagram from 171,000 to 246,000. The DAK will present the study results this Thursday. They were available in advance to the Deutsche Presse-Agentur.

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“The increase in media addiction is mainly due to the growing number of pathological users among boys,” said study leader Rainer Thomasius of the DZSKJ at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE). He warned of the consequences due to the neglect of activities, family, friend:ing and a shifted day-night rhythm.

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“As personal, family, and school goals take a back seat, age-typical developmental tasks are not adequately addressed. A standstill in psychosocial maturation is the result.” Thomasius advocated “continuous scientific recording” and preventive and therapeutic services.

The Expert:in sees pathological or pathological use when a loss of control, a “prioritization over other activities,” and a continuation of use despite negative consequences can be observed in those affected. “The behavior usually persists over a period of at least twelve months. This results in significant impairments in personal, social, and educational-occupational areas of life.” Pathological gamblers and social media users gamble or chat for four or more hours a day, according to the study.

Study with repeated interviews with parents and children

The study is based on a repeated survey of parents and children by the opinion research institute Forsa. The first took place in the fall of 2019 before the pandemic, the second at the time of the first school closures in the spring of 2020, another in November 2020 before schools were closed again, and finally the fourth in May and June of this year, when schools were slowly returning to some degree of normal operation after months of closures and alternating classes.

Children and adolescents were asked about the duration and their motives for using games and social media platforms, as well as any negative effects they noticed in themselves, such as in completing assignments, grades in school, and relationships with friends:ing or family members.

It had already become clear in the first surveys, which had already been published, that children and young people spent much more time on their cell phones, computers or games consoles during Corona: Previously, it was just under two hours on Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok or other platforms on weekdays. During the first lockdown in spring 2020, that increased to more than three hours a day. In November, when schools were then mostly open but free time remained severely limited, usage dropped again slightly but was still well above 2019 levels. That remained the case this May and June.

Two hours and twelve minutes a day

A similar trend was seen for games: Before Corona, the children and young people surveyed were engaged in computer or online games for an average of one hour and 23 minutes on weekdays; in April 2020, usage increased sharply to two hours and twelve minutes a day. After that, there was a slight decline again.

The usage times for games and social media during the week and also on weekends were still “significantly above the pre-crisis level,” Thomasius said. Another survey will be sought next year, he said. This could show whether Corona has left lasting traces in usage behavior.

The president of the professional association of pediatricians and adolescents, Thomas Fischbach, was pessimistic. “Especially for children and adolescents with already risky media use before, the lockdowns were a considerable health risk factor that virtually catalyzed the transition into pathological media use.” It is to be feared that this undesirable development cannot simply be completely reversed even after the end of the pandemic.

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