The Skinny on Screen Time: Common Sense Over Research (at least for now)
By Justin Patchin, Cyberbullying Research Center
There has long been a fervent debate about the potential impacts of screen time on youth. When our son was born in 2010, the American Academy of Pediatricians recommended no screen time for children under the age of two. The guidelines have softened a bit in recent years, but the group still generally promotes less rather than more time in front of screens for toddlers and young children.
And while fear-based rhetoric about the harmful consequences of screens abounds, solid research is generally lacking. It’s true that childhood screen time has increased since 2010. It’s also true that depressive symptoms, suicide rates, and anxiety among teens have been increasing recently. But does that mean the added time in front of a screen caused these problems? It should also be noted that teen pregnancy, drug use, binge drinking, and delinquency are all down recently. Can we blame screens for these positive developments? We are reminded in all of the above relationships that correlation does not equal causation.
Simply put, we still don’t know much about the consequences of screen time (on the positive or negative side). Nevertheless, some are moving forward with restrictions before waiting for evidence.
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SLC 2018: Workplace Bullying is a Safety Issue
by Stefanie Valentic, EHS Today
Bullying, harassment and violence (BHV) are safety issues in the workplace, even though they normally fall to human resource departments.
I. David Daniels, president and CEO of ID2 Solutions, explained the safety professional’s role when it comes to protecting workers from violence on the job at the 2018 Safety Leadership Conference in Louisville.
“Your services could be suffering because workers were not treated correctly in their position,” he told attendees.
What ends as a violent act starts out slowly as incivility, or the intent to harm a worker. Negative interactions or jobs at someone could be brushed off as a cultural norm at the workplace. However, this could escalate to hazing or harassment and progresses to a physical act.
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Bullied for looking different: ‘I just want to go to school and get on with my life’
By Boudicca Fox-Leonard, The Telegraph
Monday morning in New Eltham, south-east London, and years one, two and three file politely into the school assembly hall. “Good morning,” says Phyllida Swift. “Good morning,” chorus back the cross-legged students of Wyborne Primary.
Today’s is a special assembly. The colourful art displays around the hall hint that the theme isn’t an unfamiliar one to the young students. This term they’ve been studying Wonder, the bestselling book by R J Palacio about a boy born with a rare facial condition and what happens to him when he goes to school for the first time. But this will be the first time most of the children have met someone who has dealt with the issues raised by the book. Swift looks like any other 25-year-old, except she has a scar across her left cheek, eye and forehead.
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Cuyahoga County, Ohio Employer Of Four Or More? Ordinance Expands LGBTQ Protections
by Monica Lacks, Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart (Mondaq)
Employees in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, now enjoy more expansive protections against discrimination than they do under Ohio and federal law. On September 25, 2018, the Cuyahoga County Council passed County Ordinance No. O2018-0009, entitled “An Ordinance enacting Chapter 206.13: Commission on Human Rights and Title 15: Anti-Discrimination to ensure equal opportunity and treatment for all citizens of Cuyahoga County.” The ordinance affords protective rights on the basis of two previously unprotected characteristics: sexual orientation and gender identity.
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