Smartphone-Free Childhood SA (SFC-SA), a parent-led initiative, is calling for a more cautious and intentional approach to digital access during childhood, as a global study warns of serious mental health risks associated with early smartphone use in children.
This follows the release of a comprehensive international study published in the Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, which analysed data from over 100 000 individuals across more than 160 countries.
The study found that children who received smartphones before the age of 13 were significantly more likely to experience mental health challenges in early adulthood, including anxiety, depression, emotional instability, aggression, and social withdrawal.
The research also highlights social media as the biggest contributing factor, accounting for 40% of the link between early smartphone ownership and declining mental health. Other contributors include disrupted sleep (12%), strained family relationships (13%), and cyberbullying (10%).
SFC-SA's Claire Thompson tells Saturday Star that the findings should serve as a wake-up call for South African families. “Children between 10 and 16 are in a critical stage of brain development. The emotional centres of the brain are in overdrive while impulse control and reasoning are still under construction. Giving them unfiltered access to the digital world during this time can be incredibly destabilising.”
Thompson warns that smartphones, particularly when unsupervised, expose children to psychological stressors and inappropriate content they are not equipped to process. “Being excluded from a group chat or receiving fewer likes on a post may seem minor, but for a child, it can feel like deep rejection. They don’t yet have the tools to manage that kind of feedback.”
She added that the dangers go beyond emotional strain. “We’ve seen children stumble upon explicit content or fall prey to online predators. These are risks that require maturity and guidance to navigate safely.”
In response, SFC-SA is advocating for community-wide support in delaying smartphone ownership, implementing digital literacy programs, and encouraging policies that protect young minds. The movement is part of a growing global push to reconsider how and when children are introduced to technology.
“Smartphones aren’t going anywhere, but how we integrate them into our children’s lives is still within our control. We’re not anti-technology, we’re pro-childhood.”
As awareness of the issue spreads, the organisation aims to reshape the conversation around kids and tech, focusing on mental health, developmental readiness, and safer digital habits for the next generation.
Lerato Ntwampe, an admitted attorney of the High Court involved with the movement, shares her insights from her interactions with schoolchildren.
“I think one of my biggest concerns when I engage with schoolchildren during talks is how unaware many of them are about the range of online harms that exist. It's not that they don’t know these things happen; many are aware, but they don’t always understand the legal implications. Some of these online behaviours are not just harmful; they’re illegal. This includes hate speech, cyberbullying, sexting, and the sharing of child sexual abuse material (commonly referred to as child pornography in South Africa), and how this content is often circulated on WhatsApp groups and platforms like Instagram and TikTok.”
One parent, wishing to remain anonymous, voiced her agreement with SFC-SA and shared her own struggles in navigating smartphone access for her 10-year-old son. “I’ve allowed my son to have a smartphone out of fear of him feeling left out among his peers. However, I implemented the Google Family Link app to monitor his usage,” she shares. Yet, she laments that technical issues have rendered her efforts ineffective, leaving her son free to explore the digital world without limitations.
A teacher from a phone-free primary school in the Free State expressed her support for the cause stating, “In my classroom, I recently used the topic ‘At what age should a child get a smartphone?’ for a speaking assessment. My aim was to encourage students to engage with their parents while also exploring factual information from credible studies. I hoped parents would take notice of the compelling research surrounding smartphone usage among children.”
anita.nkonki@inl.co.za
Saturday Star