Beware if Your Child Refuses to Play Outside Because of Gadgets

Jakarta – In the past, parental anxiety often arose when children refused to come home from playing outdoors. However, in today’s digital era, parenting challenges have shifted dramatically. Concerns now emerge when a child appears “well-behaved” inside their room with their gadget.

This phenomenon is often deceptive because parents feel their child is within safe physical reach. Yet mentally, they could be exposed to boundless risks from the outside world.

“Nowadays children might seem more well-behaved because they’re at home. But with them at home just holding gadgets, without their parents knowing, what are they actually doing? Who are they chatting with?” asked psychiatrist Dr Kusuma Minayati, Sp.KJ(K), during a dialogue with the Coordinating Ministry for Community Empowerment of the Republic of Indonesia at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Indonesia on Friday (27 February 2026).

Without supervision, the digital world can impose particular mental pressure on children still in developmental stages.

“As a result, parents risk not truly accompanying or ‘being present’ as a parent,” said Dr Kusuma, a child and adolescent psychiatrist at RSIA Bunda Jakarta.

Parents must educate children about the dangers and risks that might emerge in the digital world, including the importance of protecting personal data to prevent misuse.

Without proper guidance and sufficient digital literacy education, children risk experiencing cyberbullying in the digital world, exposure to age-inappropriate content, and behavioural disorders.

“The negatives of the digital world are indeed unavoidable. Because children are still in developmental stages, the question is how can parents and their environment accompany them?” said Dr Kusuma.