Pokemon distorting real world, say doctors

Dubai: Augmented reality games like Pokemon Go which superimpose digital information onto real life are seriously hampering the studies and social behaviour of UAE children and can result in physical injuries, health experts have warned.

These games blur the lines of interaction and cause serious social and emotional disorders in children in the age group of 10 to 15 who are in the formative years of establishing real relationships, warn health specialists and gaming gurus, they said.

Joe Akkawi, a gaming enthusiast and tech guru, explained: “Augmented reality has been around for more than a decade but it’s only now that gaming companies are using it extensively. It is different from virtual reality or VR. The VR created an artificial information but augmented reality syncs both worlds and overlays digital information over the real world,” says Akkawi.

A child who plays on gaming consoles knows he is in an artificial environment. He or she plays for some time, shuts down the game and is back to the real world. In augmented reality games, however, his own real world is constantly overtaken by digitised images. It is like a child walking with his three-dimensional glasses surrounded by an Alice in Wonderland reality throwing the digital ball to catch a Pikachu perched right behind a bush he may be passing by, Akkawi explained.

Psychologists fear that allowing 10-year-olds to play this kind of game will seriously damage their perspective. Mary John, a Dubai-based clinical psychologist, explained how this kind of distortion of real life could impact the formative mind of a young child.

“Children today are already addicted to video games and addiction of any kind that distracts a child to an extend that he does not wash, sleep or eat is bound to affect him physically and emotionally and impact his performance in school. While the human brain has the capacity to differentiate between two- and three-dimensional reality and adapt, seeing life through the prism of augmented reality, as in the case of Pokemon Go, is likely to seriously hamper a young child’s understanding of the real world around him. He will become a loner and refuse to interact with people or know how to return a hug or a smile and this will impact his social and emotional skills that he begins to build in this age.”

Some reports suggest that Pokemon Go is helping autistic children venture out of their comfort zones. But John thinks that it is too early to draw such a conclusion. “A child in the autism spectrum usually avoids eye contact or any kind of social interaction. If this game is helping him seek out these digital characters, he is actually being pushed deeper into his world. The game may be helping an autistic child follow instructions and focus but it is definitely not helping his social skills,” added John.

Dr Mohmmad Tahir, child and adolescent psychologist at the Dubai Health Care City, feels that the society is already grappling with teenage addiction to the virtual reality world and the game just represents a step ahead in that addiction. “I receive cases of so many students who are addicted to online gaming that is seriously hampering their studies and overall performance, causing serious behavioural problems. So far no one has reported complication arising out of playing this game but it is only a matter of time.”

Physical injuries

To those who say the game is actually encouraging youngsters to walk around and indulge in physical activity, Dr Tahir says this is counterproductive. “In Pakistan and India, I remember young teenaged boys chased kites, running on rooftops and hanging precariously from heights, and getting electrocuted by overhead cables. Ultimately, the governments of these countries had to ban the sport. So no one can argue in defence saying running after kites was healthy. In the current craze of catching Pokemons, children cross roads, walk across potholes and risk their limbs and lives to capture a digital character to advance to the next level. This cannot be defended as physical activity as the child’s moments are robotic.”

Dr Kedar Patnekar, specialist paediatrician from Prime Healthcare Group, seconds that. “When a child is hardly aware of his environment and cannot even enjoy the outdoors with healthy interaction, that cannot be counted as physical activity.”

Dr Patnekar, who attends to several children injured by motion-sensing games after falls from chairs and who have trigger thumbs caused by pressing the joystick, says it is only a matter of time before “we will have injuries caused by augmented reality games like Pokemon”.

If augmented reality games are to be a necessary evil of lives that we cannot wish away, it is time to acknowledge its physical and emotional fallout, and restrict its use in younger children to avert collateral damage as much as possible.

Parentspeak

Urvashi Palicha, Consultant

“Ever since we visited Disneyland in the US this summer, my 14-year-old son, Aditya, has got addicted to Pokemon Go. We were standing in the park with 25 children around us trying to catch Pokemons. My son downloaded the app right there and got deep into it. Right now he is at a very advanced level. I must commend the shrewd business sense of the gaming company to introduce this in the summer holidays. So whenever I ask my son to keep the phone away, he argues it is his leisure time,” said Palicha.

While in the US, the Palichas had a scare when their friend’s 11-year-old daughter was almost knocked down by a car in Los Angeles as she stepped on to the road to catch a Pokemon.

“I keep arguing with my son and pointing out the risks and warning him all the time,” said Palicha. However, succumbing to their son’s demands, the Palichas have given their son a basic Dh30 package and allow him to go with his friends to the malls to catch Pokemons.”

“There is peer pressure and the child has to feel inclusive in his friend’s community. I countered it by enrolling him in a sports camp where he spends time from 9am to 1pm in pure physical activity and high-octane social interaction. I hope once school starts, Aditya will have other important things to focus on and his game fever will subside.”

Samer Constantini, government employee

He limits the play time by not giving the smart phone to his child. “My son Yousuf is only eight years old and the only time we play this game is when we go to the malls. While my wife and 10-year-old daughter go shopping, my son and I have this special fun bonding time catching Pokemons. I guess until I can keep my son away from having his own phone, I can control this craze.”

Pamela Rozario, a teacher

She has a daughter aged 14 and a son aged 15. Both children are avid enthusiasts of the game. “In the beginning, it was crazy as my children were too caught up with the game catching Pokemons everywhere they went. Luckily for me, in Business Bay where we live, there weren’t many Pokemon stops or gyms. As they were sincere about completing their summer projects, eventually their craze died down. Now they indulge in it once or twice a week and I am a happy mother.”

Maria Al Daoudi

Her eight-year-old son, Sadiq, is a quite a pro at Pokemon Go, but his mother has yet to give him a smart phone. “That was the best way to contain the craze. Sadiq hated going to the malls but now he happily accompanies me because he looks forward to getting my phone to play Pokemon. I make sure that I would give him the phone only for a limited period, keep an eye on him so that he does not go beyond 50 metres and always tell him the battery is dying or I need to make a call to get my instrument back. So far, he has complied because he is young. I have no idea when I will have to give him his own phone. I am going to push this as far as I can because once you give a child his own smart phone, you cannot really take it back.”

Dos and Don’ts for parents

1. Keep a strict regimen of time allowed for the game and stick to it no matter how much the child emotionally bullies you

2. Limit the child’s data package to prevent him from walking on roads to catch Pokemons and make sure he can do it only where there is Wi-Fi

3. Use the allowance time as a reward to encourage good habits — of meeting homework goals, meeting people, indulging in physical sport. Here, the parents have to make sure they do not allow the child to bargain for more time as this can be damaging. Rewards need to be realistic.

4. If a child cheats, do not let him get away with it.

5. Children imitate parents, so when parents come home, they must put away their smart devices and be with the family entirely to ensure the child’s complete interaction.