Parents who reward their children’s good behaviour with extra screen time can expect them to spend even more time online (and put them at risk of obesity and having poor social skills)
- Modern parents use rewards of more screen time in return for good behaviour
- Researchers say the system is counterproductive and can cause habits to form
- The more you award kids with screen time the more time they will spend online
- This puts them at greater risk of obesity and poorer social skills later in life
View
comments
Parents who reward their children with extra screen time may be doing them damage in the long-term by encouraging them to develop bad habits.
Modern parents often use the reward system of more time in front of the television, tablets or smartphones in return for good behaviour.
Researchers are now warning that the incentive of added screen time for young children can cause them to spend even more time online.
Children given screen time or who have it taken away as a punishment spent more time on devices than those who weren’t disciplined in this way, experts said.
The technique also put them at risk of developing obesity and having poor social skills later in life, they warn.
Scroll down for video
Parents who reward their children with extra screen time can be doing their children damage in the long-term by encouraging them to develop a habit. Modern parents have been using the reward system of more time in front of the television, tablets and phones for the last decade in return for good behaviour (stock image)
Scientists at the University of Guelph in Canada concluded that children who get rewarded with more screen time, adopt a habit that tends to continue throughout their lives.
Professor Jess Haines, who worked on the study, said: ‘It’s similar to how we shouldn’t use sugary treats as rewards because by doing so we can heighten the attraction to them.
‘When you give food as a reward it makes children like the carrot less and the cake more. Same thing with screen time.’
The study investigated the impact of parenting practices on the amount of time young children spend in front of screens.
It involved 62 children between 18 months and five years of age, and their parents, of which there were 68.
-
Dig for Victory! Royal Horticultural Society appeals for… Pedal while you work: $399 smart exercise bike replaces your… Tokyo’s talking subway robots: City launches six-foot… Artefacts from the ancient Greco-Roman city of Palmyra…
Share this article
It is at the preschool/toddler age that habits and routines become established and put them at ‘greater risk of obesity’ as well as ‘poorer social skills later in life’.
Parents were asked how they monitored their children’s screen time, when they were allowed on them and how much they themselves spent in front of a screen when around their children.
On average children were found to spend nearly an hour-and-a-half on devices during weekdays and slightly more than two hours a day on weekends.
The team, from the University of Guelph in Canada, found that children whose screen time was awarded or taken away as punishment spent more time on devices than those who weren’t disciplined in that manner (stock image)
The study found a majority of parents use screen time as a way to control behaviour, especially on weekends.
This resulted in children spending on average 20 minutes more a day on the weekend in front of a screen.
Lisa Tang, a PhD student who also worked on the study, added: ‘We wanted to investigate the impact of parenting practices on toddler and preschooler’s screen time because this is the age when habits and routines become established and they tend to continue throughout life.
‘Also the use of mobile devices, such as tablets and smartphones, has soared in popularity among this age group in recent years,’ Ms Tang said.
The study also showed that parents spending an average of two hours a day in front of a screen during the week and just over two-and-a-half hours a day on weekends suggests that children are learning from example.
HOW SEVERE IS SMARTPHONE ADDICTION?
With the average age for a child to get their first phone now just 10, young people are becoming more and more reliant on their smartphones.
Worrying research from Korea University suggests that this dependence on the technology could even be affecting some teens’ brains.
The findings reveals that teenagers who are addicted to their smartphones are more likely to suffer from mental disorders, including depression and anxiety.
Other studies have shown people are so dependent on their smartphone that they happily break social etiquette to use them.
Researchers from mobile connectivity firm iPass surveyed more than 1,700 people in the US and Europe about their connectivity habits, preferences and expectations.
The survey revealed some of the most inappropriate situations in which people have felt the need to check their phone – during sex (seven per cent), on the toilet (72 per cent) and even during a funeral (11 per cent).
Nearly two thirds of people said they felt anxious when not connected to the Wi-Fi, with many saying they’d give up a range of items and activities in exchange for a connection.
Sixty-one per cent of respondents said that Wi-Fi was impossible to give up – more than for sex (58 per cent), junk food (42 per cent), smoking (41 per cent), alcohol (33 per cent), or drugs (31 per cent).
A quarter of respondents even went so far as to say that they’d choose Wi-Fi over a bath or shower, and 19 per cent said they’d choose Wi-Fi over human contact.
Professor Haines said: ‘We think the amount of screen time is higher on weekends because children are at home and typically have more interaction with their parents.’
‘As children get older, out-grow their naps and have later bedtimes, parents spending time in front of a screen without children around becomes more difficult.’
Ms Tang added: ‘Watching screens takes away from other interactions that help children develop social and academic skills.
‘Our hope is that these findings can help us arm parents who are entering a world where screens are ubiquitous.’
The study was published in the journal BMC Obesity.
Source: Read Full Article