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 Researchers examined survey data from parents in 170 families with
young children and found mothers and fathers who were more likely to
report being distracted by technology during playtime were also more
likely to see behavior problems in their kids.
"Prior studies have shown us that some parents can be quite absorbed
by their devices and that when they are absorbed it seems like it is
difficult for children to get their attention," said lead study
author Brandon McDaniel of Illinois State University in Normal.
"No prior studies however had linked parent technology use,
especially use that interrupts or interferes with parent-child
interactions, with child behavior problems specifically," McDaniel
added by email. "What is especially new here is that even minor,
everyday intrusions of technology that are likely happening to all
of us that have and use smartphones can begin to influence our
children's behavior."
For the study, researchers analyzed data from surveys completed
separately by 168 mothers and 165 fathers from two-parent
households.
Among other things, the surveys asked about how often smartphones,
tablets, laptops and other technology disrupted family time with
interruptions like checking phone messages during meals or answering
texts in the middle of conversations. Parents were also asked to
rate how problematic their personal device use was based on how
often they worried about calls or texts and whether they thought
they used mobile devices too much.
While both mothers and fathers thought technology use distracted
from interactions with their children at least once a day, the women
perceived their phone use as a bigger parenting problem than the
men.
About 48 percent of parents reported technology interruptions at
least three times a day, while 24 percent said this happened twice a
day and 17 percent said it occurred once daily. Only 11 percent said
technology never interrupted family time, the study team reports in
Child Development.
Researchers also asked parents to rate the frequency of child
behavior issues within the past two months by answering questions
about how often their children whined, sulked, easily got
frustrated, had tantrums or showed signs of hyperactivity or
restlessness.
After adjusting for other factors that can influence kids' behavior
such as parent income and education level and other family dynamics,
researchers found an association between parents’ belief that their
technology use was disruptive and parents reporting that kids had
behavior issues like tantrums, whining or hyperactivity.
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The study wasn't a controlled experiment designed to prove how or if
parents' technology use changes the way kids behave. Other
limitations include the lack of clinical data or reports from
teachers or other adults to verify that kids had behavior problems.
It's also possible that parents who turn to technology more often
during family time are doing this to take a break from kids with
behavior issues, said Dr. Sam Wass, a developmental psychologist at
the University of East London in the UK who wasn't involved in the
study.
"It could be that children who are naturally more restless or
hyperactive are more likely to have parents who ‘need a break’ from
their children from time to time - and it is this that causes the
association," Wass said by email. "This link is very far from
proven."
Still, parents worried about how technology disrupts their family
time can try to carve out periods of each day when the devices go
away and they focus only on their kids, said Larry Rosen, professor
emeritus at California State University, Dominguez Hills.
"Children crave a connection to their parents and learn from their
parents' behaviors," Rosen, who wasn't involved in the study, said
by email. "Constantly checking your phone is going to have a
negative impact on this connection."
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/2rciUsr Child Development, online May 10,
2017.
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