Parents worried about child media use may not be aware that their own media use patterns at home may be significantly affecting their children.

In this episode of Screen Deep, host Kris Perry discusses “technoference” – the interference of technology in relationships – with the researcher who coined that term, Dr. Brandon McDaniel. 

Dr. McDaniel shares results from his work on how parent device use can affect relationships and impact children from infancy through adolescence, how children may manifest these impacts through behavior, as well as how parental mental health and stress inform and are informed by their own technology use. Dr. McDaniel discusses the challenges of limiting phone use, and provides suggestions for how parents can model healthy device use during family time, work to be more present in interactions with their children, and manage co-parenting conflict around family media use rules.

In this episode you will learn:

• What “technoference” and “phubbing” mean. 
• How parental technoference affects children of all ages.
• Behavioral signs in infants, children, and adolescents that may indicate negative effects of parent media use. 
• How parent stress and mental health influence media use and impact children.
• Early findings from an ongoing research study on parents of infants and the connection between their media use and mental health.
• Where the research is going to better understand the complex interplay between parent media use, child development, and behavior.

For more resources and research on this topic visit the Learn and Explore section of the Children and Screens website (https://www.childrenandscreens.org)

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Music: 'Life in Silico' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. www.scottbuckley.com.au