Buying Your Child a Phone? Consider These Factors First
By Movieguide® Contributor
While it’s inevitable that every parent will need to buy their children phones at some point, here are some factors to consider while deciding if now is the right time.
Child and adolescent psychiatrist Dr. Joshua Stein advised parents to first consider whether or not their children are responsible with the technology they already have access to. Even before they have a device of their own, children can develop addictions to other technologies such as video games or TVs. If this is the case, it is likely an indicator of what would happen if they were granted unlimited access to a phone.
“Previous behavior on a video game system, a parent’s smartphone or a [school laptop] can demonstrate if a smartphone would be problematic for your child,” Stein told Fox News Digital.
Titania Jordan, chief parenting officer at Bark Technologies, also suggested parents consider the maturity of their child beyond the tech space.
“Kids are going to make mistakes, but the potential for danger with phones is very high,” Jordan said. “They need to understand and accept the consequences for missteps online.”
Parents should also consider the consequences that children can face when they indulge in high amounts of screen time such as increased rates of anxiety and depression while also negatively impacting their motivation and sleep.
Nonetheless, certain factors may give parents no choice but to buy their child a phone for the sake of communication or safety. When this is the case, experts advise parents to be proactive about fighting the negative effects of technology by regularly talking with their children about how their phones impact them. Discussing the type of content they are consuming and asking them to share anything they have seen that confused or upset them can lead to safeguards against many of the dangers that come from having a phone.
Movieguide® also encourages parents to limit their children’s screen time and encourage their kids to engage in activities away from technology as much as possible to build strong, lifelong habits that will serve them extremely well in the future.
Movieguide® previously reported:
While increased screen time leads to comparison, jealousy and envy in teens, a recent study conducted by Pew Research found that those who spend less time scrolling experience more joy and peace.
“Roughly three-quarters of teens say it often or sometimes makes them feel happy (74%) or peaceful (72%) when they don’t have their smartphone,” the study found.
“I think screen time is one part of the picture…but it’s really not the whole story,” noted Dr. Laura Erickson-Schroth, the chief medical officer at The Jed Foundation.
Other factors impact how screens affect teens’ mental health. She explained that the biggest potential harm from screens is its effect on sleep.
“Being in front of a screen before bed means you’re being exposed to blue light, which can suppress melatonin production and make it more difficult to fall asleep or get quality sleep,” Fox 25 reported.
“So, certainly screen time at night can throw off your circadian rhythm,” Erickson-Schroth explained. “In other areas, there isn’t as much evidence that screen time, directly using your phone, has an effect on mental health.”
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