Developing a sensitization program on the Blue Whale Challenge for Teachers and Adolescents in India

Abstract

The Blue Whale Challenge has become a topic of discussion presently due to the negative aftereffect it is carrying with it. It is evident from the reports that there has been an increasing number of teenagers who are being trapped into this deadly internet game Blue Whale Challenge. The Google Trends of past 12 months report a sharp increase in the searches related to the blue whale challenge in India (news18.com 2017). Around 200 suicides have been reported all over the world by the players of this game. It is of seeming importance that there is a need to sensitize schools, teachers, families and parents of adolescent populations on a broader level to understand psychological impact of such games. Internet addiction in adolescent population all over world has come up as an eminent problem in the present scenario. There has been a volatile growth in the use of internet not only in India but also worldwide in the last decade. There were about 42 million active internet users in urban India in 2008 as compared to 5 million in 2000 (I-Cube 2008).