Discussing the relationship between present-day technologies and how they contribute to the aggravated feeling of anxiety, particularly in young people, two authors from different walks of life felt that open communication with the younger generation in the family was important for good mental health during a talk “Exploring the Effects of Technology on the Anxiety Levels of Today’s Youth” at the Sharjah Children’s Reading Festival (SCRF).

In conversation with broadcaster Abdulkarim Haneef, the duo, Dr Wafa Al Shamsi, Omani writer and poet who teaches at United Arab Emirates University, and Catherine Dellosa, a video gamer from the Philippines who has written two books, talked about safer methods for online safety and mental peace.

Al Shamsi, who is the author of 50 printed stories, took references from her interactions with her own son and how she devised means to keep him engaged with activities that interested him after school hours so that he didn’t spend too much time in front of the screen. She likened the family to a social partnership where the parent has a more important role than ever before.

The educator observed that meal time should be family time and spending time on screen during meals was an unhealthy practice biologically and mentally for children. She also stressed on the need for them to know about tools to protect their identities in the cyber world. But at the same time, a child has to experience mistakes in order to learn from them, she added.

Dellosa said she was always in love with video gaming, and that it helped her reduce her stress. As an avid reader and writer, she said she was a victim of the comparison culture where she would begin comparing her success with others’.

“If you are a passive user of social media, that’s where the anxiety kicks in. When you are just lurking or scrolling from your tiny corner of the world, it is definitely going to affect you negatively. But if you go out there and do something actively, then it will have a positive effect on you. If you feel sorry for yourself because you have one less follower than someone else, maybe you can do something more productive or have some fun,” Dellosa advised.

If a child is acting oddly, it is possible that he/she could be a victim of bullying, she noted. In the case of children, it is important for parents to be there and give them a support system without reprimanding them, and it will create wonders in the family, she pointed out.