CHILDREN'S SMARTWATCHES RAISE CONCERNS ABOUT PEER PRESSURE, EXCLUSION

When 11-year-old Yu Zexi from Changsha, Hunan province, began describing her smartwatch usage, she spoke with the fluency of a seasoned social media user.

"I've had my smartwatch since second grade — that's over three years now," she said. With more than 70 contacts on her device, she actively participates in her peer social network. "I use it to chat with friends on a WeChat-like function, share updates in my circle of friends, and post photos from my life."

Yet this digital connectivity comes with self-awareness. "It's easy to get addicted," she confessed, recalling a time when she bypassed parental controls. "When my dad disabled my watch functions, I found a way to reactivate them when I got his cellphone during homework time, but he eventually found out and locked it again."

Her classmate Huang Lei has a more controlled relationship with her device. "I only wear my watch on weekends or when I go out alone to (outside) interest classes," she said.

Like Yu, she's well-versed in the watch's social features. "You can post photos, send voice messages, like others' posts — it's essentially a mini-smartphone on your wrist."

But she's also witnessed the social pressures these devices create. "Some classmates will delete you from their friends list if you don't like their posts. It's like a threat to your friendship."

Peace of mind

These young voices offer a compelling window into the complex digital ecosystem that children's smartwatches have created across China.

What began as a simple safety device to make it easier to contact parents has quietly evolved into full-fledged social platforms for young students, creating both new opportunities and unforeseen challenges for children, parents, and educators alike.

For many families, the journey with smartwatches begins with safety concerns. Zhu Yuyan, a mother of a fifth grader at a primary school in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, recounted her son's introduction to the technology.

"His first watch was a birthday gift from his aunt when he was in first grade," she said. An upgrade to a more advanced model in fourth grade came at her son's request. "He wanted the same type that other children in his class had."

Like many parents, Zhu maintains clear boundaries around usage. Her son only wears it during outdoor activities or when attending interest classes, like his youth center programs. He doesn't bring it to school normally, she said.

The primary motivation is assuring her son's safety.

Although Hangzhou has good public security, having the watch with GPS and call functions gives the family extra peace of mind, especially when the boy travels without his grandparents or parents, Zhu said.

Yet this reassurance is accompanied by persistent concerns. Zhu admits to occasionally checking her son's chat history, worried he might encounter age-inappropriate content.

"So far, I haven't found anything problematic, but the concern remains — they might come across bad language or unsuitable online expressions," she said.

She has also noticed her son's growing desire for digital validation. "He enjoys posting status updates and hopes for likes, though he doesn't receive many since his friends aren't very active."

The smartwatch represents just one facet of Zhu's parenting strategy for a son born in the digital era.

"For tablet usage, I strictly limit his time," she said. Her son primarily uses the tablet for learning chess and experiencing AI tools like Doubao. "I allow him to use AI for learning approaches but not direct answers. Initially, I supervise to ensure he uses it properly."

This careful mediation stems from overexposure to digital devices — her son's eyesight has deteriorated, which she attributes partly to increased screen time.

Checks and balances

Schools across China are developing varied approaches to managing smartwatches.

Wang Luxi, vice-principal of Hangzhou Chunhui Primary School, said her school does not recommend students bring smartwatches to school, though it has made accommodations for individual cases where parents have specific safety concerns.

The school's cautious stance stems from the devices' impact on the learning environment. "Today's smartwatches have extremely powerful functions — comparable to adult smartphones," Wang said.

Students can easily get distracted, and the incompatibility between different brands has unfortunately fostered comparison among children, she said. The devices have become social tools where children add friends and interact digitally.

From an educational perspective, Wang questions the necessity of advanced social features for young students.

"Functions like social feeds and online chatting seem unnecessary when children have ample opportunity for face-to-face interaction during school activities," she said.

"When children go on outings, they experience things together and share spontaneously. There's little need to re-share those moments later in digital spaces."

Wang is also skeptical about the safety argument for smartwatches, suggesting that schools already provide enough alternatives.

"If children need to contact parents, they can always approach teachers or use school landlines," Wang said.

She said as both an educator and parent, she has chosen not to purchase a smartwatch for her second-grade son after discussing its necessity.

The boy eventually understood that during school hours, when the watch is held by teachers anyway, its utility is limited, she said.

Teacher Xie at a Changsha primary school has adopted a stricter position toward smartwatches, banning them in her classroom.

"There's simply no need for them in our school environment," she said. "We have security systems, landline phones, and teachers with mobile devices. If emergencies arise, children have multiple ways to seek help."

Xie, who has a daughter in third grade and another in junior high, said she has never bought smartwatches for her children, and they've never asked for them because they know her position.

She believes the devices create more problems than they solve. "The screens are too small for children's developing eyesight," Xie said. "The multiple functions lead to distraction, and brand competition fuels unhealthy comparison among students."

Instead, she favors developing children's problem-solving abilities. "Without smartwatches, children learn to seek help from security guards, borrow phones, or find other solutions when needed," she said.

Peer pressure

Among the young users themselves, the smartwatch culture reveals complex social dynamics.

Huang Lei, the youngster from Changsha, described how brand dominance shapes social circles.

"Little Genius dominates the market. If one person uses it, everyone follows because you can only add friends using the same brand," she said.

This creates a form of digital peer pressure where device compatibility determines social access, critics say.

Yu Zexi said some classmates change watches frequently to keep up with newer models. "It's like Apple phones — there's Z7, Z8, Z9, each more advanced and expensive than the previous model," she said.

Both young students are aware of potential risks.

Huang has encountered online bad language and cyberbullying that has spilled into offline interactions. "They learn rude words from online games or videos and then use them to insult classmates during chats," she said.

Yu described more potentially dangerous behavior among her peers. "Some students befriend strangers through the watch or engage in 'CP' (couple-like) relationships," she said.

While she said she had no strangers in her own friends list, she acknowledged it would be interesting to try.

The two students said they understand the commercial forces at play behind these devices.

"Little Genius knows how to appeal to children's psychology," Yu said. "They release slightly upgraded models regularly, so children will keep wanting the newer version."

Huang added: "It's not exactly cheating us, but they're definitely targeting our weaknesses."

'Hard currency'

The rapid evolution of children's smartwatches has also raised concerns among education experts.

Xiong Bingqi, director of the 21st Century Education Research Institute, said some children's watch accounts — with hundreds of friends and tens of thousands of likes — have become tradable commodities, sometimes selling for hundreds of yuan online.

Originally designed for children's safety, these devices are increasingly being transformed into social "hard currency" among elementary and middle school students, Xiong said. He pointed to the emergence of gray market activities like account cultivation and leasing centered around these devices.

Xiong attributed these developments to manufacturers' strategic decisions.

"Many producers have continuously added smartphone-like features — cameras, chat functions, video calls, social feeds — progressively strengthening the social aspect," he said.

While these features enhance market appeal, they also introduce risks into devices that parents perceive as enhancing their child's safety.

However, Xiong's greatest concern is what he calls the "social black box" effect.

Children's smartwatches create private digital spaces isolated from parental supervision while remaining accessible to strangers. Within these environments, children face powerful group pressures where virtual capital, like contacts and badges, determines social status, potentially distorting development of their value systems, he said.

Xiong called for regulatory intervention.

Supervisory departments should redefine product standards for children's smartwatches based on the Law on the Protection of Minors, restricting excessive entertainment and social functions, he said.

Xiong urged strengthened management of built-in applications, social features, and payment mechanisms to curb gray market activities and comparison culture.

"The watch has both advantages and disadvantages," Yu reflected. "It helps us maintain friendships and share our lives, but you always need to be careful."