How Old is Old Enough? Collecting Data on Children in Gaming and Healthcare

TCAST

Gillick competence refers to a child’s capacity to consent to their own medical treatment without their parents or guardians having to know or give their consent.

But in an era where we are always giving out our personal information through our digital footprint, does this measure for consent still hold water? And if it applies to healthcare, why doesn’t it apply to other industries, like gaming?

Join Alexander and Jason as they challenge today’s norms on parenting, data collection, and a child’s capacity to make informed decisions.

Helicopter Parenting

Human progress has reached a point where many of us are privileged to be living comfortable lives. However, this may have come at a cost: an increased aversion to taking risks, exploring freedom, and allowing independence. This extends to the way society believes parents should raise their children.

Helicopter parenting, for the most part, does result in some short-term benefits. The constant surveillance means that children learn how to succeed in a closed environment. However, the reality is that parents won’t always be there to enforce a strict routine and study schedule. At some point, children need to be given the opportunity to explore the world at their own pace.

Empowering the Next Generation

Gillick competence can be established if the minor can demonstrate that they have “sufficient understanding and intelligence to fully understand what is proposed.”

With all the fearmongering and biased media we consume on a daily basis, it can be easy to think of the worst of humanity. Allowing children to live, for as long as they can, away from making big decisions for themselves may seem like the smarter and more loving choice.

But the way children are treated in their youth will leave indelible marks on the people they grow into. If we want to help empower children and raise independent adults, we need to give them the space and grace to make big decisions for themselves.

As discussed in this episode, children are a lot more capable than we give them credit for. And the innate human desire to do the right thing, backed by statistics, indicates that the world is not as scary as we think it is. Helicopter parenting only serves to isolate children and hinder their personal development.

Is it really empowerment if they only know how to succeed in a vacuum?

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