A study by the Technological Children’s and Recreational Products Institute (AIJU) reveals that between 30 and 45% of children’s mental health is affected by the pandemic and incarceration. This was reported at Altea this Wednesday during the presentation of the guide this organization prepares annually, which includes a total of 103 articles selected on this occasion for their pedagogical and usability features.
The promotion ceremony of this 2022-2023 edition, held within the framework of Pre-Show Toys, which brings together all the actors of the national toy industry, received the support of the Minister of Sustainable Economy, Productive Sectors, Trade. and Work, Rafa Climent, managing director of the Spanish Association of Toy Manufacturers (AEFJ), José Antonio Pastor, and Manuel Aragonés, director of AIJU.
The research, which was carried out with 600 families with sons and daughters aged 3-12, shows that the pandemic causes an increase in anxiety, boredom and pessimism among the little ones. 50% more upset and angry. Regarding social skills, increased use of technology by 47% meant reduced time spent with friends for 70% of children, although technology was an ally in this regard as it allowed for virtual relationships.
Also, the pandemic it also had negative consequences on children’s nutrition and sleep. 20% to 25% of them suffer from the same ailment. Finally, it should be noted that more than 40% of families surveyed think that the pandemic will have an impact on their children’s future, particularly their ability to relate to friends, their emotional well-being, and their quality of life.
In this sense, toys and playing with friends can help reverse these situations, develop social skills, enjoy a healthy leisure time, and improve overall physical and emotional well-being.
Another report was presented during the action, and it was concluded: 32% of families say they consider sustainability when buying toys and 44 percent think the current supply of sustainable toys is low or very low.
During the presentation of Pablo Busó, coordinator of Children’s Studies at AIJU, although sustainability is one of the top 10 factors, quality-price (62%), educational value (56%) and children’s demand (46%) remain the main purchasing criteria. continues.
In the study, which was carried out with 2,800 families with boys and girls aged 0-12, the perception of sustainability in the toy world of consumers in Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, France and Italy was analyzed. For 79% of families surveyed, a sustainable toy is about being easily recyclable, then made from recycled materials and/or made from natural materials. In addition, 75% associate the sustainable toy with wood and cardboard materials, noting that it is durable.
In this sense, the environmental problems that most concern consumers are mainly the optimization of energy use (66%) and climate change (57%). To combat these problems, consumers consider measures to be encouraged to include educating children on responsible consumption (56%), promoting the recycling and reuse of products (53%), and reducing plastic consumption (51%).
Regarding the guideline, it is a project funded by the Department of Sustainable Economy through IVACE (Valencian Institute of Business Competitiveness) with a nomination grant of €216,000. It should be noted that at this time it remains the only guide with only available products in the national context approved by consumer institutions. Passed pedagogical and usability studies with over 100 hours of free games. 29 companies and producer groups participated in this edition and contributed to a total of 109 products, 103 of which were selected for inclusion in this guide.
Sustainable Economy Minister Rafa Climent stated that “more and more companies are moving from seeing sustainability as an expense to seeing it as an investment”. In this sense, “management foresight and Let’s help companies with the budgets and tools to integrate sustainability into their strategy”. The head of economy referred to the special and leading line launched by IVACE in 2019 to support the research of technology centers in the circular economy.
Likewise, according to Manuel Aragonés, director of AIJU, “this guide aims to be a tool to assist the consumer; this analyzes the information from the evolutionary perspective of the expert, the family, and the child himself. All products recommended in this guide have undergone extensive studies to demonstrate their suitability for use and their psychopedagogical and recreational value”.
José Antonio Pastor, managing director of AEFJ, said: “This guide, already a classic of the industry’s Christmas campaign, is not only a reference for consumers when choosing a demand for the Three Wise Men, but also an exponent of the main bets and trends in innovation in the toy industry: values, sustainability and inclusion education. Fun is guaranteed.”
Finally, Pablo Busó, coordinator of the AIJU Child User Research and Pedagogy department, pointed out that this is one of the most important AIJU projects, because it allows it to act as its flagship project, advocate and monitor the importance of play in childhood. It has a huge impact on families and society in general and, given the broad involvement of companies, allows direct advice on R&D in the development of new products.”
Play, toys and awareness
Games and toys are learning tools that can contribute to the development of social and civic values in a simple and fun way from childhood. Thus, AIJU has developed Project Childtizens IITheir aim is to raise children’s awareness of social values related to sustainability through games (IVACE funded project, through FEDER funds).
created for this A system of symbols that makes it possible to visually and easily identify games and toys that contribute to raising awareness of positive values in childhood. To obtain the symbols, games and toys go through a detailed analysis process in which their characteristics and the role they can play in the development of childhood social values are evaluated.
It should be noted that the implementation of the identifier symbol system is already used in this Guide.