The National Center for Child Health and Development conducted an online survey in June and July to assess the effect of the coronavirus outbreak. Children between seven and 17 years old participated, accompanied by their parents. In total, about 7,000 more people were interviewed.
The survey found that 72% of young people had symptoms of intellectual stress. Young people said thinking about the coronavirus made them feel bad and affected their concentration.
Respondents were asked how they would react if they or their families were infected. About a third of young people said they would keep it a secret and 47 percent said they would assume many other people would adopt this approach.
When asked about their emotions towards their peers who had recovered from the coronavirus, 22% of young people said they didn’t need to play with them.
Researchers say those emotions can lead to discrimination or intimidation of inflamed people. They warn that now young people are worried because the summer holidays are over.
Dr. Hangai Mayumi, who led the survey, says young people are experiencing new stresses on a “new normal” as some schools resume classes.
She says discrimination and prejudice can arise as part of a shield that children raise for themselves. She wants adults to pay conscientious attention to children’s concerns and concerns and inspire them with a rational response.
Discrimination is already emerging and at least 8 cases of harassment have been reported in Niigata Prefecture. Most victims are young people whose parents are fitness professionals or who have visited spaces where the infection is spreading. Some of the young people who were harassed were referred “corona”.
In Nara Prefecture, some academics were denied a train-the-trainer program due to a coronavirus outbreak at their university. The group had been produced at the university’s rugby club and none of them were members.
In Saitama Prefecture, a mother involved spoke to NHK about her situation. She said her daughter, a second-grader, is afraid of the coronavirus and doesn’t need to go to school.
When the school urgently closed due to a coronavirus infection, the woman became frightened and cried, her mother said.
When classes resumed at the end of July, the mother reported that her daughter felt great tension and did not need to go.
The woman remains concerned and her parents are seeking to restrict her exposure to data about the virus. The mother says she told her daughter not to discriminate against those infected.
Japan’s Ministry of Education issued a national advisory on August 25 in an attempt to address some of the bullying and discrimination disorders that are emerging in schools. He urges academics to show compassion towards those who have been infected. And he asks teachers to get the virus and advise young people on clinical knowledge about it.
It should be noted that the statement calls on all members of school communities to denounce discrimination, prejudice and slander against inflamed people. He says such negative habits can lead to delays in diagnosis or concealment of infections, which can worsen the outbreak. .
Members of the nonprofit 3keys engaged young people by providing them with an online area where they can post their thoughts.
The website, called Mex, connects children who can’t see family or friends with groups that provide help.
It is aimed at young people between 10 and 19 years old. It helps users find the right orientation based on the nature of their considerations and their location.
Approximately one million people used the service in the last fiscal year.
The operator reports that many messages from children were posted about family problems, including abuse, after schools closed in March. Since the categories resumed in June, the focus has been on bullying and friendships.
3keys founder Moriyama Takae says it’s vital that adults help young people feel rather than pressure them.