Alert call as risky sexual behaviour among students in Bahrain rising
TDT | Manama
The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com
Staff Reporter
Psychologists and child counsellors are issuing an alert call to parents and teachers over “rising risky sexual behaviour” among the students, both citizens and expatriates. They attribute this alarming tendency to parental neglect or conflict, sexual abuse in early age, poor social support, substance abuse in parents and poor value system along with inconsistent discipline in family.
“These all factors can lead to the development of poor self-control in children, which further leads to drug abuse and risk-taking behavior,” they observed. Speaking to The Daily Tribune, a psychologist and child counsellor based in Bahrain, who doesn’t want to be named, said that many worried parents have been approaching her, complaining about their children’s risky sexual behaviour.
“The number of children brought to me for counselling for ‘risky sexual behaviour’ has been really high since the beginning of pandemic. This is an issue that needs to be addressed on an instant basis,” she added.
Deepthi Prasad, psychology professional and Managing Director of Balance Personal and Professional Solutions, said long periods of online classes must be viewed as one of the prominent factors behind this “increasingly worrying behaviour” from the part of students.
“The increased screen time, that also not under the surveillance of parents or elders, would give many students the opportunity to access pornographic materials and images. Children who use the internet regularly for classes, entertainment, and social networking are undoubtedly at increased risk of exposure to pornography.
“It remains crucial for parents to be aware of the dangerous effects of unwanted exposure of online pornography on children, and to know how to tackle the problem before it goes out of control. “Exposure to sexual content before a child’s transition into adolescence can make them less sensitive to sexual activities and this could induce them into risky sexual behaviour from an early change,” Ms Deepthi added.
She said multiple psychological issues are faced by the children in their adolescence period. “If you see, at present, many children are unable to cope with daily routines after schools and colleges have opened offline sessions. Emotional and behavioural issues are hardly manageable for many students.
“Anxiety and depression has increased among the teenaged students and so has drug abuse. And all these lead to rising risk taking behaviours, which include risky sexual behaviour and self-harming behaviour.” Ms Deepthi said parents have an important role in addressing these issues.
“Frequent monitoring of children, especially those in the teenaged years is very important. Parents should know their child’s daily activities, friends and things like where they are going. “Parents must definitely spend some time with their children; talk to them and listen to them. They should also engage in fun activities with them, which will improve the bond between the child and parent.”
The psychology professional said discussing family values and establishing a consistent discipline pattern at home also have a substantial role in tackling rising risk taking behaviours among the children. “Parents and teachers must encourage children to lead a healthy lifestyle, which includes proper nutritious food and adequate physical activities.”
She affirmed that parents and teachers must be “role models to the children and not just advisors”. Ms Deepthi added that such behavioral patterns could be reversed with proper interventions and children’s need for thrill-seeking and risk-taking could be channelled into positive activities.
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