Modern Social Challenges: Mobile Addiction and Gender Violence

Bioethics Meeting in Tapia: Key Social Issues

During this quarter, we worked together on the exhibition for the bioethics meeting of Tapia. We discussed two very important issues in today's society that affect us day-to-day: mobile phone use and gender violence. We delved deeper into the subject of mobile technology, and these are my conclusions:

The Impact of Mobile Phone Addiction

The mobile phone is one of the most important devices in our daily lives. With it, we communicate with our friends, send important work emails, and use social networks like Twitter or Facebook to stay informed about world events. We also use YouTube and Instagram for entertainment and to pass the time. While the mobile phone makes life very easy, it also takes something away; excessive use is now considered an addiction. This is a unique addiction because we often do not realize we are affected by it.

Consequences of Excessive Smartphone Use

• We spend more time with our mobile phones than with our families.
• We stop going out with friends because, by using WhatsApp, we feel they are already close to us.
• We are becoming increasingly sedentary, which harms our physical health.

The Science of Distraction: Reward Neurons

Another significant issue is how phones affect our ability to study, as we are easily distracted. This is explained by the function of reward neurons in our brain. A study was performed to explain these neurons: a rat was placed in a cage with a button. If pressed, the rat received a ball of food from a dispenser as a reward. The rat learned this and began to press the button continuously. However, when the scientists removed the food, the rat began to feel stressed because it no longer received its reward. This mirrors our behavior today; we check our phones continuously to see if people have answered our messages or if we have received more likes on our photos.

Mobile phones are causing many problems without us realizing it, and we must address this issue as soon as possible.

Addressing Gender Violence in the 21st Century

The other issue addressed this quarter was gender violence. This is a highly controversial issue and a major problem in today's society. The number of deaths caused by gender violence is increasing, which is a very worrying fact.

Machismo and gender violence are closely related; the perceived superiority that some men believe they have over women is a primary cause of these fatalities. Many women today are afraid to return home or are effectively locked in under the pressure of their husbands or partners. Even though we are in the 21st century, these incidents still happen every day. All people are equal, yet many still fail to recognize this fundamental truth.