I have been a parent now for nine years, and while I have never written a scathing letter to the Guardian bemoaning societal neglect of children and the use of devices as digital babysitters, “screen-time” is something I have tried to regulate as a parent of three girls aged 3-9.
I have been in the camp that argues – “well I didn’t do that as a kid”, “when I was a kid we didn’t have tablets, or the internet and we didn’t wear helmets… and look how I turned out,” “kids today are soft…” etc. I am in this camp; however, I am not being completely ignorant of 21st century reality, and I generally accept change when it comes to technology. After all, this generation has tablets and the internet, their parents didn’t. My parents’ generation had polio and measles and mine didn’t. Not all change is bad.uardian, Screen Time Guidelines should be built on evidence, not hype, a larger societal problem becomes apparent. With the omni-presence of social media, and superfluous impact of traditional news media, society has become less critical of what they consume, and are quick to jump to generalisations based on the knowledge of a bygone societies norms without looking for that inconvenient truth in the matter. The article identifies that there is not sufficient evidence to support the detrimental effect of screen time on children, but the masses (who write to the Guardian anyway) see things differently, and source their views on public opinion and unsubstantiated generalisations.
I am a hypocrite. I will still limit the screen-time of my kids despite the apparent lack of evidence to suggest that it is in anyway stunting the growth of Canada’s future Prime Ministers and astronauts. Because, from my own casual observational research based largely on my knowledge of my own kids, and how I see their friends and the various hundreds that I teach operate, I don’t like the laziness I see in children whose parents are not active in their child’s lives. I don’t like the child who cannot hold a conversation, or complete an activity without looking at their phone every time it buzzes because they have not been shown how to function in a socially appropriate manner by their parents. Is screen time to blame? The research says no, but when screen time is coupled with laissez-faire parenting, it is difficult to argue. (here you could because I provide no scientific research to suggest that I am in fact right: I am a hypocrite). Social skills still need to be taught. I take solace in the knowledge that research does not seem to support any psychologically damaging impacts related to the amount of screen time a child has. But, to all of these parents writing to the Guardian demanding government regulations etc. I question how much of an active role they have taken in their child’s lives? Someone should research that, though finding willing participants could prove tricky.
A Development Autistic Research Technology (2016) article linked within the Guardian article notes concerns of the Guardian readership:
Physical health problems like obesity continue to escalate, and mental health problems among children and young people are approaching crisis levels.
The article rightly points out that video games and other screen time uses are not to blame exclusively, but they are relatively new, and do coincide with the “obesity epidemic”, so they are an easy scapegoat. More research, the article notes, is required, but so too is objective evaluation of all of the various distractions that life in the 21st century provides.
References
Guest Blogger. (2016). A response to “Screen based lifestyle harms children’s health”. Development Autism Research Technoloogy (DART). December 30, 2016. Retrieved from: http://www.dart.ed.ac.uk/guardian_letter/
Etchells, P., et al. (January 6, 2017). Screen Time Guidelines should be built on evidence, not hype. The Guardian. January 6, 2017. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/science/head-quarters/2017/jan/06/screen-time-guidelines-need-to-be-built-on-evidence-not-hype
Hey Marshall, great post and I agree with you totally. I too have no hard evidence to back up any of your claims, but I too see a disturbing trend in today’s youth with regards to too much screen time and the negative effect on social skills.
I too have 3 young children and while I think it is important for them to be tech savvy in today’s world, I think that being able to look someone in the eye and have a conversation with them is just as important.
Hi Marshall,
Thanks for sharing your personal experience and views in this article. It reminds me of my own experience growing up in the 1960s & 70s. Why? Because the TV was under attack then as “the idiot box”, listening to music on the the radio was corrupting youth, and any quiet individual persuits (reading, needle-crafts, painting) were seen as detrimental to social development and health. Yet, as a family, we watched TV, sang along with the radio, read voraciously and learned how to knit, crochet, and paint. (does paint-by-numbers count?). My parents did parent; my siblings have all achieved some level of success in their academic and professional careers, and I am here online with all of you MALAT folks taking graduate studies and applying what I learn to help others–which takes a lot of screen-time ?
Hi Marshall,
Great post and on point! Though I am not a father myself, I have been around enough parents to see how the crutch of technology is being used to minimize the amount of parenting they are required to do. Case in point, I field many calls from parents who state “You have to fix my Internet because my kid is going crazy without Netflix and I don’t know what to do!”. Are you kidding me?!?! First world problems for sure. When I worked at the arena parents would drop their kids off, hand them a tablet, and then drive away expecting the technology to keep them entertained for an hour…or expect others to watch over their kids. Parenting seems to have become very laissez-faire and that is more concerning to me than the technology itself.