Interdisciplinary Journal of Family Studies, XXIV, 1/2019 Beyond good and evil: The impact of digital environment in family life Giuseppe Maniaci a , Caterina La Cascia a , Alessandra Giammanco a , Laura Ferraro a , & Daniele La Barbera a a University of Palermo, Department of Biomedicine, Neurosciences and Advanced Diagnostic, Section of Psychiatry, Palermo (Italy) Abstract. Internet has changed the way we interact with others and has become an essential tool for daily activities. Children and adolescents are the main users of new digital technologies and their first contact with a screen happens increasingly earlier in life. Its premature use can be dangerous: technology represents a “supernormal stimulus” that can act on the brain reward circuit and affect neural development. In this article we describe the effects of technology on the brain, well-being, social and family relationships, highlighting both positive and negative ones: rather than defining a priori any type of technology as “good” or “bad”, we should consider how specific applications are used in order to determine their impact. Adults, as parents and role models, should be a guide for kids in order to help them regulate the use of technology in both qualitative and quantitative terms. Keywords: digital device, iGeneration, digital natives, Internet abuse, social networks Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Giuseppe Maniaci, University of Palermo, Department of Biomedicine, Neurosciences and Advanced Diagnostic, Section of Psychiatry, Via del Vespro, 129, 90127, Palermo (Italy), email: giuseppe.maniaci02@unipa.it Received: 14.04.2019 – Revision: 18.04.2019– Accepted: 13.05.2019