Being online for most of your free time probably doesn’t seem like a problem… but is it? The Chinese government has officially labeled “Internet addiction” as a clincal disorder and feels that it poses a major threat to its teenagers. Checking Instagram or Facebook as you stand in line might be more serious than you think (at least in China). The government has taken an aggressive approach to fixing the problem. Their solution to overuse of the Internet? Boot camps.
Teens in China like gaming and the Internet, like teens the world over.
But the country has built over 250 boot camps to help eradicate “Internet addiction.”
An instructor and former soldier are escorting this young girl to Qide Education Center, an Internet addiction treatment facility in Beijing.
Parents can send their children to these camps.
There, they undergo psychological examinations.
They are also subject to military-style physical training.
The training is meant to cure their addiction.
The kids are also given lessons in Chinese ethics and culture. Instructors and ex-soldiers teach them.
They also take music and dance lessons.
Spending the majority of your free time online isn’t healthy…
And most of these children are physically weak.
However, it’s hard to see this as an acceptable solution.
Teens should learn the importance of lessening Internet usage.
It’s believed that the pressures of life in China is why so many of their teens turn to the Internet for happiness.
But this style of “rehab” probably wouldn’t fly in the United States.
So the next time you see a child too focused on their cell phone…
Make sure to tell them about these boot camps.
“Internet Addiction Disorder” may indeed be a real disorder, however it’s hard to tell if extreme boot camps and chemical treatments are necessary. Although, I could see why the government would want to build these treatment camps: fewer people would be taking pictures of their food at dinner or taking selfies in bathrooms.
