DBT AS EMOTIONAL SUPPORT FOR CHILDRENAND ADOLESCENTS WITH COMPULSIVE AND DISORDEREDUSE OF ELECTRONIC DEVICES

This work aims to contemplate how to emotionally support young people with compulsive and disordered use of electronic devices, a condition which most likely impacts development. Children and adolescents are increasingly exposed to electronic devices not only for academic purposes but most frequently for leisure: to play games, explore information and/or social media. It is fundamental to intervene psychologically to prevent mental illness. We will address diagnostic criteria for compulsive and disordered use of electronic devices, and propose Dialectical Behavioral Therapy techniques as an intervention for the emotion dysregulation that often co-occurs and interacts with compulsive behaviours. We intend to use a role play to illustrate our proposed intervention. We understand that emotional support is fundamental for treating people with compulsions and lack of inhibitory control, therefore we will highlight the emotion dysregulation implicit in impulse control disorders so as to promote development and mental health.