You ask your child to put the phone down, concerned about the effects of too much screen time on their developing brain. But what if the problem is not just their habits, but yours?
New research suggests that it is not enough to simply limit a child’s screen time, but the way parents use technology around their children can influence a child’s cognitive development, emotional well-being, and even how much time kids themselves spend on screens.
Many parents scroll through their phones during mealtime or playtime, often without thinking twice. But this seemingly harmless habit is creating a growing disruption known as “phubbing”, when technology gets in the way of face-to-face connection.
Since young children rely on their parents’ attention and responsiveness to feel secure, explore their world, and develop emotionally, when this connection is interrupted, it can quietly affect their healthy development, suggests the researchers of the latest study published in the journal JAMA Network Open.
The researchers evaluated over 6,000 studies on how parents use technology around their young children and further narrowed it down to include only studies that focused on healthy children from birth to about 5 years old. These studies explored how a parent’s use of phones or other devices in front of their child, called parental technology use (PTU), might be linked to factors such as the child’s brain development, emotional health, movement skills, screen time, sleep, and physical activity.
The findings revealed that when parents use technology around their young children, it is linked to lower cognitive development, higher internalizing and externalizing behaviors, and weaker attachment. Children also spent more time on screens. The effects were consistent regardless of the type of technology used.
“Parents’ use of technology in their child’s presence was negatively associated with cognitive and psychosocial outcomes and screen time among young children, although the effect sizes were small. Further research focusing on potential impacts on physical activity, sleep, and motor skills is needed,” the researchers concluded.
The researchers stress that these findings do not mean technological devices are “inherently harmful,” as they can be useful tools for parents. However, managing how and when devices are used around children could help reduce possible negative effects. One helpful approach may be co-viewing or co-using devices with children, which has been “positively associated with cognitive outcomes” in early childhood.
