Is the picture above a familiar scene inside your home?
Last week, I was watching Steve Harvey Show on TV and Steve helps one dad whose family is spending more time on their phones, i-pads and video games than with each other. The father said that they are together but not connected.
Steve surprises the family by showing up on their doorstep and confiscating every piece of technology for a 48-hour tech diet!
One of the girls really felt bad, she was even yelling “it’s unfair!’
She was mad asking her father what they’ll gonna do on their free time.
It was an awkward moment at first since they are not used to be just sitting around the house and have nothing but each other’s presence.
The father pulled out a board game, brought her entire family for a game outside their home and later had their own share in preparing meal for dinner.
“It was fun, it is something we never did before,” the youngest said when Steve asked the family how they went through the 48-hour without technology.
Dr. John Duffy, clinical psychologist and author of ”The Available Parent” offered some tips on kids and technology and why and how much we need to be concerned about what our kids are exposed to.
He said that the potential effects that technology can have on kids are stress, anxiety, agitation and depression.
If kids use too much technology they disengage socially, which can lead to anxiety and depression. After a certain period of time, kids become agitated enough that they become anxious to use the device a lot and that factors into the stress when they no longer have it. The child feels like they need it all the time.
What’s the maximum amount of time kids should spend using technology daily?
Dr. Duffy said that ‘no reason for kids to be in front of a screen for more than two hours a day.’ Kids feel like they are missing out on something important or they want to increase their skill in a particular activity or game. You want to make sure that there is enough time for them to do other things, to connect with people, to read or to study. You don’t want that screen time to become their entire life.
What can parents do to balance tech time and quality family time?
- SET LIMITS-Effectively that means being very clear as to how much time is to be used for a certain device and where you can use it. Set a place and time where these devices can be used.
- MODELING BY EXAMPLE-If you’re asking your child to put their phone down they are less likely to listen to you when you are holding your phone, checking your e-mail or staring at a computer playing words with friends.
- PLAN TECH FREE ACTIVITIES- Have no phones at dinner. Conversation is so much better when you have no distractions. This is very good for kids. Looking at screens constantly is very stressful for both them and you.
Share us your thoughts in dealing with your kids on technology.
-Confe
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