VIJAYAWADA: Blame it on easy access to ‘bad content’ on smartphones, there is increased aggression and violent behaviour in youngsters, especially minors, which is prompting them to commit child abuse such as kidnaps, molestation and sexual assaults. Child psychology experts are expressing concern as many teenagers are getting addicted to porn.
According to crime statistics 2020, as many as 220 rape cases were reported in Krishna district, including Vijayawada, where a majority of the accused in the cases are minors and have confessed that they have committed crime after watching porn. On the other hand, 12 cases of murder of women were reported in Vijayawada and another six were reported in the district.
A similar incident took place a week ago where Kruthivennu police arrested a Class 10 student at Nillapudi village in Krishna district for molesting an eight-year-old girl, who happens to be his neighbour. During investigation, police and parents of the teenager came to know that he used to watch porn on his smartphone. Police said that the teenager committed the crime against the minor girl unable to control his sexual aggression.
“Teenagers and youngsters, addicted to pornography, are more prone to commit crimes. The above incident is a classic example. A case has been registered against the teenager and he was sent to a counselling centre,” said Kruthivennu SI V Ravi Chandra Kumar. Child psychologists also opined that minors, who frequently watch porn, behave aggressively. The teenagers also tend to show abnormal characteristics such as anger, sadism, perversion, sexual coercion or just sexual gratification.
When contacted, Vishal Indla, a renowned psychiatrist in the city, attributed the rise in sexual crimes to access to pornographic content on websites and lack of parental supervision. He stressed the need for monitoring the online activities of children by setting up parental controls on smartphones while accessing open sources like Google, Facebook and YouTube. “Exposure to porn at a time when their hormones are in developing stage will make teenagers anxious and cruel, sometimes. The activities of teenagers need to be monitored closely as chances of they becoming potential predators and commit crimes are high. With online learning taking centrestage, parents are caught in a catch-22 situation whether giving smartphones to their children at a young age is advisable or not,” Vishal explained.
He also said teenagers staying in hostels are more prone to watch porn. “Hostel wardens bring their students to our clinics after finding his/her behaviour extreme. Teenagers’ mind should be diverted with physical activities like sports,” he observed.
The dark side of pleasure
Child psychologists opined that minors, who frequently watch porn, behave aggressively. The teenagers also tend to show abnormal characteristics such as anger, sadism, perversion, sexual coercion or just sexual gratification. The psychologists attributed the rise in sexual crimes to access to pornographic content on websites and lack of parental supervision