The Importance of Social-Wide Special Protection Network
for Children
Zhengguo Wang
College of Liberal Arts, Yonsei University, 50 Yonsei-ro, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, 03722, South Korea
Keywords: The Importance, The Child, The Child Protection Programs.
Abstract: The healthy development of children, as fragile individuals with potential, as builders of future societies and
creators of future human civilization, cannot be ignored. Even an increase in the length of screen use can lead
to difficulties in cognitive development, but data on child abuse from public agencies such as the United
Nations show a grim picture. Child abuse is a universal phenomenon in human society. The main content of
this paper shows how to carry out child protection programs within society. These elements of the motion are
emphasized: Connections of children to the family, school, community, etc. need to be strengthened or called
children social networks reinforcement. The breadth of connections to social actors needs to be broadened.
Assistance is needed to increase the depth of relationships with others. Furthermore, opportunities for public
empathy for children should be enhanced.
1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Vulnerability of Children in This
World: Screen Usage
In the current era of information technology, screens
almost have become a necessity in modern society.
However, screen use can have a negative impact on
people, especially minors. Screen use in infancy at 12
months showed a graded correlation (r = 0.35-0.37)
with altered EEG activity before the age 2 and a
decline in executive functions at the age 9 (Law et al.,
2023) and there was a significant correlation between
higher levels of screen time at 24 and 36 months and
poorer grade of Ages and Stages Questionnaire, Third
Edition (ASQ-3) which had been completed by
mothers at 36 and 60 months respectively (Madigan
et al., 2019). There has been a significant increase in
sleep health problems related to screen use
(LeBourgeois et al., 2017) and there is significant
moderate relationship between sleep quality, sleep
duration, sleepiness and academic performance be
shown among children and adolescents (Dewald et
al., 2010). Increased screen time can predict a decline
in the mental health of children and adolescents
(Twenge & Campbell, 2018). Watching TV before
the age of 3 has a detrimental effect on reading
recognition and comprehension (Zimmerman &
Christakis, 2005).
According to Common Sense Media's census data
(Rideout et al., 2022), Community Survey, and March
2020 Supplement of the Current Population Survey,
U.S. Census Bureau shows minors aged 8-12 use
screen media for an average of 5 hours and 33 minutes
per day, and minors aged 13-18 use screen media for
an average of 8 hours and 39 minutes per day.
Therefore, attempting to reduce the hazards of
screens for human, especially the child during their
development is crucial for the future of society.
1.2 Vulnerability of Children in This
World: Violence Suffered
Families, schools, and other community
environments where children are exposed should be
given protection and support, but according to global
statistics: 32% of students have experienced school
violence, traditional physical violence is decreasing,
while cyber violence and relationship violence are
increasing (Behind the numbers, 2019). This means
that school violence may be more and more carried
out in relatively secretive ways and linked to screen
media use.
Nearly 300 million children aged 2 to 4 are
regularly subjected to violence by caregivers and
about 250 million are regularly subjected to
physically punished by caregivers (A Familiar Face,
2017).
Wang, Z.
The Importance of Social-Wide Special Protection Network for Children.
DOI: 10.5220/0013991500004912
Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)
In Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Innovative Education and Social Development (IESD 2025), pages 375-379
ISBN: 978-989-758-779-5
Proceedings Copyright © 2025 by SCITEPRESS Science and Technology Publications, Lda.
375
Even the community out of family and school,
according to a United Nations Children's Fund
(UNICEF) (n.d.): Nearly one in 10 children
worldwide is forced to work, even in part through
human trafficking, some girls face the harsh social
rules of vulva mutilation and forced child marriage.
Every year, thousands of boys and girls are used as
soldiers, cooks, spies, etc. in armed conflicts around
the world, and thousands of children are killed or
injured by explosive weapons. Violence against
children even occurs in every country and class.
Millions of children are being displaced, and
thousands of girls and boys are being separated from
their parents. Some 2.7 million children live in
residential care facilities, based on armed conflict,
natural disasters and migration, or even simply on
discrimination. Growing up in an institution puts
children at risk of physical, emotional and sexual
harm. Children suffering from conflict, natural
disasters and other humanitarian crises may suffer
severe psychological and social consequences.
Millions of children born today do not exist
"officially". Sexual exploitation and abuse, born
without proof in law, and millions of children face an
unjust justice crisis.
Even routine screen exposure can impair
children's cognitive development. Then, when those
meant to protect them become sources of harm - or
worse, extreme harm - how can children possibly
defend themselves? The reality these children face is
truly horrifying. The protection of children's rights
and interests, especially physical an
d mental health
protection, is urgent.
2 WORLD IN MIND AND
REALITY
In the human mind, people automatically construct a
world called the subjective world. The overlapping
part of cognition, that is, the part that most people
simultaneously authenticate, is the objective world.
The common physical world that most people can
perceive and interact with is called reality. Many
people know that they live in reality, and that what
people want, some are different from reality. If
mental health, living, wants to live and understands
that it will continue to live in a relatively stable
physical reality, it is inevitable that people want to
experience good things and live in a reality that does
not deviate too much from ideals. Most people have a
deep-seated desire for fairness and justice. People
tend to live in harmony rather than in societies with
potential physical and psychological hazards. Since
there is an instinct for survival, be driven to be
unharmed, and reject the environment that hurts each
other. Human beings live with a tendency towards
self-perpetuation and self-development, i.e., to
continue living and to experience a better life. There
is a contradiction between theory and practice. The
opposite happens in principle and reality. In other
words, a world where people want to be kind to each
other has emerged as a reality of widespread child
abuse. The ideal situation, the reality, the perceived
situation, may be different. The perceived world may
be biased towards self-protective deterioration due to
the discrepancy between the rich experience ideal and
reality.
Self-assessment of the relationship between
psychosis and increased risk of danger had a higher
strength of relationship than the Clinical Rating Scale
(Gillespie et al., 2023). Subjective negative
judgements increase the risk of dangerous actions.
The possibility that such cognitive errors exist may
exacerbate the deterioration of the social
environment. When experiences of abuse exist during
childhood, a dehumanizing subjective world may be
actively constructed and consequently influence
moral inferences.
Cognitive ambiguity and inability to measure,
when the process of building relationships between
people is full of trial and error. Approach and
avoidance behaviors between social relationships
testing for rapport, intensity of interaction and
specific behaviors testing for bottom line and
principles. After a certain process, a relatively fixed
pattern slowly develops. This implies relatively long-
term profound interactions. Such a network of
relationships may, through conflicts and struggles,
develop certain common social subterfuges. Whether
it's relationships, social networks, or social rules, they
are slowly formed over time before becoming stable.
Children can make reasonable judgments based on
more internal ethical standards, but moral judgments
can be misjudged based on whether or not they are
heard by adults, i.e., because of social influences (Lee
& Song, 2024). Moreover, it is brain damage during
childhood affects normal abstract moral judgement as
opposed to adults (Koenigs et al., 2007). This
suggests that influences received during childhood
may lead to poor moral judgement. This explains the
persistence of practices that are harmful to the
physical and mental health of people in some regional
populations. Thus, the demands of reality may lead
one to deviate from moral benchmarks, and one may
become both the perpetrator and the victim of evil in
the process of establishing stable relationships.
IESD 2025 - International Conference on Innovative Education and Social Development
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Perhaps it be impacted by the modulation of the
amygdala and prefrontal cortex, the process of make
relationship between two people could be potential
and incremental. Perhaps there will be a demand or
shift in attitude from minor physical or verbal contact
to a greater degree of physical blows or verbal
irritation from ignoring public social etiquette.
Exposure to the world is too short and the brain
and body are in an underdeveloped state. As a group
of people relatively unfamiliar with the rules of
society, children may have limited means to fight for
their rights and may have little awareness of self-
protection. They are dependent on the moral
standards of others in the construction of social
patterns and have a naturally vulnerable position.
Widespread aggression against children may
simultaneously be the phenomenon and cause of the
commonness and continued commonness of amoral
behavior, and then the elimination of amoral behavior
on a societal scale needs to begin with the protection
of children.
The children who are suffering maltreatment just
can get limited help. The United Nations Security
Council has identified and condemned as calling
people attention to six grave violations against
children in times of war: the killing and maiming of
children; the recruitment or use of children in armed
forces and armed groups; attacks on schools or
hospitals; rape or other grave sexual violence; the
abduction of children; and the denial of humanitarian
access to children (Six grave violations against
children in times of war, n.d.). In regions where peace
has been established, people may be able to do more.
3 HOME SCHOOL COMMUNITY,
THREE-WAY BALANCE
In civilized and peaceful countries, society has a
certain order and stability, and there is a consensus to
protect children. There are relatively hidden
characteristics to the harm of children. Exposure can
therefore be effective in improving the situation of
children. The hope of human society to move towards
more civilized progress is more linked to the order of
civilized nations. It can be inferred, therefore, that in
civilized and orderly societies, a certain amount of
atrocities against children, whether physical or
mental, as well as of other kinds, are isolated in
specific social areas, within the family, schoolyard, or
neighborhood. Social-wide Special Protection
Network, a mutual monitoring system covering the
whole of society might help. In some areas, the status
of children within a particular unit (home school
community) is not open to the public or shared.
Children are underdeveloped individuals on social
intelligence, making it difficult for them to effectively
seek help from the outside world. In some areas,
where education is well developed but abuse is
frequent, it is appropriate to shift some of the
resources invested in children's education at the
societal level to safeguarding their physical and
mental health development. The future development
of a sustainable and stable civilization in society
depends on the healthy development of children in the
present. In environments where there are fewer
people, people have a relatively low desire to stop
unjust situations or behaviors.
4 SOCIETY JOINT PROJECT
Building a home-school-community network of
children's centers, which can be started as a project.
For example, a joint tripartite program to reduce the
amount of electronic screen time may help to initiate
a community-wide targeted focus on children. As the
concrete implementers of joint home-school
activities, the primary guardians, the responsible
teachers, their work is connected, they may be able to
pay more attention to children together since start it.
In addition, the children who would otherwise be
selectively watched will not lose the opportunity to be
protected. The implementation of two programs,
monitoring hours of use and increasing e-free
activities (e.g., outdoor parent-child exercise), can be
used as a baseline. Temporary closures of electronic
screens in the community to advertise during the
school day, routine visits to hospitals and police
stations, and group participation in community
volunteering activities can deepen children's
connection to the community at large.
Children learn more relevant social skills and
social communication techniques as they are exposed
to society at large. While being exposed to parents,
classmates, teachers, other community volunteers and
staff, they familiarize themselves with the structure of
social characters and their relationships, and increase
their avenues, methods, courage and opportunities to
seek help in abusive situations. Random sampling by
government or non-profit agencies, externally
sourced psychological lectures for a certain period of
time and internally organized anti-violence classes
might also be useful. Compared to identity,
stereotypes are more likely to trigger discrimination
in people (Shih et al., 1999). Increasing connections
The Importance of Social-Wide Special Protection Network for Children
377
between children and make the inter-understanding,
then the public may more easily evoke empathy.
5 LOSS AVERSION, COST AND
INCOME CONTROL,
TRIANGLE OF SOCIETY
The main reason for violence against children,
whether physically, emotional or of other kinds, is
that the cost of perpetrating it is too low and the
children's capacity to resist it is too low.
Because of the potential for simultaneous
victimization in the school home, it is necessary to
ensure that individual children have the opportunity
to learn and think about ways to protect themselves
on their own. This can be done outside the school and
home under the protection of a recognized security
agency such as a hospital or police station. Children
themselves have a certain ability to commit and resist
violence, and publicizing and improving self-
protection ability of children and promoting self-
control of children aggression may also enable the
public and children themselves to better understand
the reality and make use of their own resources to
build a harmonious society. Improving the
regulations on the protection of minors and increasing
the incentives for reporting, as well as increasing the
mechanism of tripartite visits to the home, school and
community, may be more conducive to improving
minors' right to protection. Most people will give
favors to others who are closer to them socially (Jones
& Rachlin, 2006), perhaps increasing children
relational connection to society at large has a better
chance of arousing public concern and empathy for
children. For push this work, there is research (Harris
& Fiske, 2006) shows that low-warmth and low-
capacity populations are prone to misogyny, so the
creation of images of children is also necessary. This
can be done by packaging a cute outer appearance
with inner potential.
6 CONCLUSION
The issue of child protection has a long history,
rapidly developing and continuously improving since
the rise of human rights awareness.
Currently, in civilized countries, school-age
children are both protected under the existing order
and potential shapes of future order, more likely to
determine the fate of human civilization. While
appropriate pressure and correction are necessary, on
the other hand, violence inflicted on children, whether
external or internal, physical or emotional, may lead
to adverse effects on children themselves and
potential crises for society.
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