China's screen time curbs get US parents thinking

New York－As Raleigh Smith Duttweiler was folding laundry in her Ohio home, she listened to a National Public Radio story about new rules in China that forbid children and teenagers under the age of 18 from playing video games for more than three hours a week. Meanwhile, her three children were playing the Minecraft video game upstairs.

"Oh, that's an idea. My American gut instinct: This is sort of an infringement on rights and you don't get to tell us what to do inside of our own homes," said Duttweiler, who works in public relations at a nonprofit.

"On the other hand, it's not particularly good for kids to play as much as even my own children play. And I do think it would be a lot easier to turn it off if it wasn't just arguing with Mommy, but actually saying 'Well, the police said so'."

For Duttweiler and many families outside of China, Monday's news of the country's strict social intervention－which regulators said was needed to stop a growing addiction to what it once described as "spiritual opium"－underscores a challenge to rein in video game use in their own homes, particularly during the pandemic.

Mental health

China's regulator said the new rules were a response to growing concern that games affected the physical and mental health of children, a fear echoed by parents and experts in the United States.

Paul Morgan, a father of two teenagers and a Penn State professor who studies electronic device use, sees flaws in the ban while acknowledging the challenge of controlling children's screen time. "These electronic devices are ubiquitous," Morgan said. "It's really hard to get kids away from them."

Yet, Morgan said negative associations with screen time are particularly evident for heavy users, possibly due to displacing activities like exercise or sleep. The ban does not address social media use, which is thought to be especially harmful for girls. And some groups, such as students with disabilities, may benefit from the social interaction provided by video games.

Shira Weiss, a publicist for technology clients based in New Jersey, sees value in the games that help keep her 12-year-old twin sons connected to their peers, but wants to better limit how often they play the more violent games. "I think the Chinese rules are good," Weiss said. "You're still saying 'play video games', but you're just setting limits."

Agencies Via Xinhua