From Latchkey Kids To Lock Screen Kids

From unlocking the door when getting home to unlocking screens to escape reality, kids are being left on their own more. Kids today are surrounded by screens and saturated by blue light. In a post-COVID-Era, the digital world is unavoidable, but screen time is being used more to occupy the time of the child while the parent is at work or needs time away from the child. Technology was up and coming when I was a kid, but now Gen Alpha will never know any different. When the Latchkey children were left alone for more than three hours, they often experienced low self-esteem, low academic efficacy, and high levels of depression. Conversely, Yale School of Medicine found that youth who spent the most time on their digital technology were statistically more likely to exhibit higher levels of internalizing problems two years later. Internalizing problems include depression, anxiety, social anxiety, somatic complaints, and other concerns. The parents have gone from not being there at all to not being present but replaced with screens.