These countries have imposed screen time restrictions on minors, here are the results (France is also considering it)

The question of reducing screen consumption, particularly among younger people, has been part of the public debate for several years while smartphones and tablets offer almost permanent access to social networks. The time during which young people are exposed to screens and its consequences on their proper development has become an important health issue, to the point that the government is not ruling out the possibility of putting in place restrictive measures, following the example given by other countries, particularly Asian ones.

Indeed, this Tuesday, April 30, 2024, a council of experts presented its recommendations to reduce the screen consumption time of minors in a report submitted to Emmanuel Macron. Banning screens for children under 3, mobile phones for children under 11 and social networks before the age of 15 are among the main recommendations of the document.

These countries which restrict access to screens for minors

But is this restrictive approach effective? If we look at the different methods adopted by Asian countries, the results seem controversial. In 2015, Taiwan passed a law requiring parents to monitor minors’ screen time. This provides in particular for a fine of 1,500 dollars in the event of exceeding a “reasonable” duration, as reported by Time.

A regulation difficult to enforce, the local health ministry having clarified, a few months after the adoption of the law, that it had a “more symbolic than real value”. No parent has been sanctioned. within six months following the adoption of the text.

Inconclusive measurements

The Taiwanese example is not the only one in this area since South Korea adopted a law in 2011 prohibiting children under 16 from playing video games between midnight and 6 a.m….before lifting this cover -digital fire 10 years later to adopt a preventive stance on the risks associated with screen consumption. China seems to have taken inspiration from the Korean example by presenting, in the summer of 2023, a law aimed at prohibiting the use of the internet by minors between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., as reported BFMTV.

At the same time, Beijing has revised its rules several times aimed at restricting access to screens and time spent on video games among young people, sometimes going so far as to abandon restrictive measures, like its project aimed at to reduce spending and rewards encouraging the practice of video games, abandoned at the beginning of 2024.

A journalist passionate about social issues and current affairs, Hugo puts his pen at the service of information. Interested in all themes, from the impact of artificial intelligence on…