Carmen Osorio, expert in technology addiction: ‘It’s not a good idea to give children a smartphone; in any case, you let them borrow yours’

Carmen Osorio, an expert in technology addiction focused on childhood and adolescence and creator of the platform Adictos a la Tecnología (in English, Addicted to technology), admits that if she had not been involved in social media and working for so many years on the internet, with its flaws and virtues, watching both its friendlier and its shadier side, maybe she would not have the awareness that she now possesses. Given that a phone is one of the hot gifts of the season, the question is almost mandatory: is it a good idea to give one to a child? For Osorio, the answer is a resounding no. “I don’t think it is a good idea for anyone to give children a smartphone; not the family, not Santa Claus, not anyone,” the expert declares.

For Osorio, a smartphone should not even be seen as a present. “When you give something as a gift, the person who receives it does whatever they want with it, as it now belongs to them. This shouldn’t be the case with a smartphone and a minor.” She emphasizes that with cell phones it is necessary to set rules, limits, oversee their use and restrict some features. “It’s not something you just give and say, ‘enjoy!’ It’s not a toy, nor a piece of clothing, nor a concert ticket,” she adds.

Question. What are the main reasons not to give a smartphone as a gift?

Answer. A smartphone is a very powerful object, one with millions of possibilities and risks and which we already know that 80% of minors do not use in a healthy way… Because it hooks them. So, no, I wouldn’t give that to my son. In any case, when I think that there is a real need, I let him borrow mine. And it is important that it is a real need, because if they go places alone they need a cell phone, not a smartphone with internet access. Also, add to that the fact that parents are responsible for what they do with that phone, that we have to make a series of decisions regarding its use, in addition to supervising… That’s why I think it’s not a good idea to give them one as a present; in any case, it is a loan. How did we get to the point where we’re giving our children new smartphones that cost $700 or $1,000? I would never think of buying my underage daughter a Louis Vuitton bag.

Q. At what age do you think they could own their first smartphone?

A. Setting an age to start using a smartphone is complicated, because it is not the same with a minor whose parents are responsible with the use of technology, are present, offer leisure alternatives and spend time with their children, than with those whose parents don’t see screens as a threat of any kind, parents who are absent or not very present. The likelihood of risky behaviors decreases with digital education, but other issues are beyond our control, no matter how much education there is. The platforms make money based on the time we spend on them, and they don’t hesitate to use unethical, addictive resources, so how are you going to ask a 10-year-old or a 13-year-old to stop, if it’s even hard for us adults? And then there’s the inappropriate content; anyone can see it easily, and at certain ages it is very harmful. So I think the later they have a smartphone in their hands, the better. I don’t know when we will give one to my oldest son; he is 13 and he won’t be getting one anytime soon.

Q. Let’s make a distinction between cell phone and smartphone. Which one do you think is more appropriate?

A. A non-smartphone, that is, a cell phone like the ones that today’s parents had when we were young and with which we made calls and sent text messages, was enough for us, and it did not cause addiction. Therefore, today, a cell phone without internet capabilities would be enough if children go to school alone or out with friends. But they have created that unreal need to make you feel that if you don’t have this social network or that platform, you don’t belong to a group. That is why it’s so hard for us not to give them a phone. And that is why a minimum age to access a smartphone would help a lot to relieve that pressure. They objectively don’t need one. Did you know that 81% of minors feel anxious if they have to make a phone call? They don’t even dare to do that anymore. I mean, they use it for everything except calling, which is what it should be used for. Meanwhile, they’re using WhatsApp, an app that they cannot legally use until they are 16 [in the European region; 13 everywhere else]. It’s all super illogical.

Q. Do you agree that it should be illegal for minors under a certain age to use a cell phone?

A. We have reached a point where age regulation seems necessary. Sometimes, in life, one has to take a step back. First, because parents are over their heads and have had no training in all of this. Second, because it was sold to us as an advance, but at what cost? Less attention and focus, less empathy, worse learning and communication, fewer social relationships, more disorders, more addictive behaviors… Some people are scandalized by the idea of prohibition, as if driving or voting were not prohibited until the age of 18. With a smartphone you can buy anything, sell, contact anyone in the world, consume any type of content, upload any video or photograph… How are you going to leave that in the hands of little people who are growing up? And we know that education is necessary and important, but that is not inconsistent with regulating its use for certain places or ages; in fact, they are complementary in many other areas. When you want to drive, you take an exam, you practice, you have a minimum age, even if you have known for years what each sign means, what a car is like, what a freeway or a highway is. I think that in a few years we will wonder how we left something so harmful in the hands of children and adolescents.

Q. What are the best weapons to control internet use in adolescents?

A. First of all, we must assume that we cannot control our children 24 hours a day. Parents have a thousand things to do every day, and we cannot be glued to them. So it’s about supervising and, above all, accompanying. From the family environment, which is obviously important, we must provide digital education that includes coherence on the part of adults, limits and rules, spaces and times with no Wi-Fi and an education that favors open communication. In this sense, the best parental control is us, the parents. Which does not mean that we shouldn’t install a parental control app on the smartphone that our children use. What is not enough, however, is installing parental controls and thinking that everything is under control. And then there is another shield, the social one, which would help a lot and which made many families take action in 2023. Do you remember when it seemed normal to smoke everywhere? At work, on public transportation, in hospitals… Few people were shocked by that. Today, it would be unthinkable. What is happening today with screens is that giving smartphones at very early ages has been normalized, abusive consumption has been normalized, minors using platforms that they legally can’t… All that seems normal to us. Therefore, regulation by age would help not normalize its early use, for instance.

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