Risks and Opportunities of Digitalization

Risks and Opportunities of DigitalizationAbstract. Digitalization has created an additional living environment for children and young people within a short period of time. From the perspective of child psychology, the question arises of which risks and opportunities digitalization holds for child development and psychotherapeutic care. The risks of digitalization, so-called online harms, are manifested in the aggravation or modification of pre-existing disorders (e. g., eating disorders, self-harming or suicidal behavior, hypochondria) or the emergence of new disorders (e. g., online behavioral addictions such as gaming disorder). The crucial factors seem to be the pattern of use and its functionality rather than the amount of time spent with digital media. At the same time, digital diagnostics, monitoring and feedback systems, and digital interventions offer new opportunities to improve mental health care. For example, it is possible to better reach adolescents through app-based interventions during everyday life, and digital services also provide low-threshold access for underserved populations such as caregivers. Digitalization thus poses major challenges and new tasks for science and psychotherapy.