Colman Noctor Psychology Lecture

On January 21st Colman Noctor, a Child and Adolescent Psychoanalytical Psycotherapist currently completing a Doctorate in Psychotherapy in Dublin City University, gave a packed lecture on the theme of "Sexualisation in an Online World". The talk explored the impact of increased access to sexualised material for children and young people who are now spending increased amounts of their time online, alongside the challenge of regulating online material and the possible impact of the online evolution on the sexual development of society's digital natives.

Jessica Wright, a student who attended the event, commented, "It's no small feat to have a 90 strong audience on the edge of their chairs for an hour long lecture, laughing every few sentences whilst simultaneously re-evaluating everything they knew about one of the most used technologies in the world, but that's what Colman Noctor managed to achieve with ease in his lecture about sexualisation in an online world. He skillfully navigated the complex world of the internet, porn, 'FOMO' (Fear of Missing Out), the over accessibility to social media and the problems associated with such technologies with a range of personal anecdotes and scientific evidence. With probing questions such as "does my child actually need a self reading book or an iPad toilet training device?", Colman Noctor gave us a shocking insight into the way in which even 3 year old children relate to online games as opposed to more ‘traditional’ toys, Noctor really opened the audience’s eyes to the dangers of the internet and other technologies. Whilst it’s not about avoiding the internet altogether since after all, it holds a wealth of positive information and tools, it’s about learning how to manage it and importantly how to teach children to manage it just as they would be taught not to eat too much ice-cream before dinner!"