5 min readMar 13, 2026 06:25 AM IST
First published on: Mar 13, 2026 at 06:25 AM IST
My son doesn’t listen to anyone at home or at school. We are all fed up and close to giving up. If the government can intervene and ban social-media use, we are all for it. At least we will have some peace in the house,” a relatively annoyed parent of a 16-year-old told me the other day.
The Andhra Pradesh government has recently announced that it is exploring banning social media for children under 13. Other states such as Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Kerala, too, have expressed interest in bringing in legislation to restrict social-media use. When the government proposes a ban on social-media use for children, reactions tend to be immediate. Some see it as moral policing. Others see it as long-overdue protection. But if we pause the outrage and listen carefully to what is happening in homes, classrooms and therapy rooms, a quieter truth emerges.
Children today are growing up in digital spaces that are not built for their psychological safety. Unlike television, which we consumed passively, social media is immersive, persuasive and algorithm-driven. It does not just entertain; it studies behaviour, amplifies insecurities and rewards comparison. A child may appear to be scrolling harmlessly, but beneath that screen are subtle messages about appearance, popularity, worth and validation. The developing brain is especially sensitive to reward loops. Every like, every comment, every notification activates a dopamine cycle that children do not yet have the maturity to regulate. Over time, this can shape attention spans, self-esteem and emotional resilience, often without the child even realising something is shifting inside them.
What makes this more concerning is that harm on social media is not loud at first. It does not always show up as obvious distress. It shows up as subtle withdrawal, shorter attention spans, constant checking, fear of missing out (FOMO), and a quiet but persistent comparison with others. Children begin to measure themselves against filtered lives and edited bodies. They internalise standards that are unrealistic, and live in this biased bubble that they believe is true. They constantly measure their lives against these standards and often despair when they can’t match up. Exposure to cyberbullying and inappropriate content complicates their emotional landscape.
Parents often notice mood swings but do not connect the dots to digital exposure. Social media harms in ways that are cumulative and psychological; it may not always be immediate or dramatic. By the time the effects become visible, a child is already suffering from anxiety disorders, sleep disturbance, body image concerns or attention difficulties.
All of these do call for a supervisory mechanism that empowers not just parents, but also children in the long run. An absolute and blanket ban, however, may not be the most effective or realistic way to go about it. Technology is embedded in modern life. A rigid prohibition may simply drive usage underground, making monitoring harder and conversations difficult. Children would continue using social media whether we like it or not, but they would simply do it on the sly this time.
What could the possible restrictions look like? For instance, delaying independent access until a certain age while allowing supervised, time-limited exposure could strike a balance, as children would be more accountable. Screen-time caps integrated at a system level rather than left entirely to parental enforcement could ease the burden on families, as many children are manipulative about it. Digital literacy education must also become compulsory in schools, teaching children not only how to use technology, but how not to use it.
Ultimately, this debate is not about control; it is about protection during a vulnerable developmental window. We do not allow children to drive cars before they are ready, not because driving is evil, but because age-related maturity matters. The same principle applies here. Childhood is a period when identity is fragile, self-worth is still at a formative stage, and peer validation carries enormous weight. A thoughtful, calibrated restriction acknowledges both realities: That social media is here to stay, and that children deserve stronger guardrails. The ban, if refined rather than absolute, could serve as a protective pause, giving children time to build the emotional tools they need before stepping into a digital world that does not always have their best interests at heart. This would also lessen the burden on already struggling parents.
The writer is a Mumbai-based psychologist, psychotherapist and special educator
