Parents have been concerned about social networking sites for a long time because they don’t know who their children are talking to. But now there is a new concern: a growing number of psychologists and neuroscientists believe that continous use of online networking such as Facebook and Twitter is actually changing the way children’s brains work. Baroness Greenfield believes continuos exposure can effectively ‘rewire’ the brain. Even the layman can see this is possible if you consider ‘brainwashing’ techniques.
Parents and teachers are finding that more and more children have a very short concentration span when away from the screen and lack the ability to communicate well.Â
Of course, children should be able to use computers and the many advantages they offer, and no-one is suggesting that social networking should be banned – it is a way of life now for many people. But perhaps if you have children it would be wise to limit the amount of social networking and certainly make sure children have learnt to develop real relationships with people.