ScienceDaily: Frequently using digital devices to soothe young children may backfire
And sometimes, handing a fussy preschooler a digital device seems to offer a quick fix. But this calming strategy could be linked to worse behavior challenges down the road, new findings suggest.
Frequent use of devices like smartphones and tablets to calm upset children ages 3-5 was associated with increased emotional dysregulation in kids, particularly in boys, according to a Michigan Medicine study in JAMA Pediatrics.
"Using mobile devices to settle down a young child may seem like a harmless, temporary tool to reduce stress in the household, but there may be long term consequences if it's a regular go-to soothing strategy," said lead author Jenny Radesky, M.D., a developmental behavioral pediatrician at University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children's Hospital.
"Particularly in early childhood, devices may displace opportunities for development of independent and alternative methods to self-regulate."
Some Insights From This Article
The popular parenting trick to keep your child busy and distracted with iPads and mobile devices may be doing more harm long term that may outweigh the few minutes the temporary “peace and quiet” that it affords.
According to developmental pediatricians, using mobile devices to especially distract and calm children may have a long term consequence in terms of teaching and developing children’s ability to regulate and manage their emotions in the future.
This research has some relevance in adults as well. Relying on our phones as the primary source of when we’re bored can have negative consequences socially for us as well.
How do you restrict your phone usage?
Full article is here!
#Phone #Children #Emotions
It's funny, I have 2 nephews, one very into electronic devices, the other one not so much. For the older, this started right as a baby, he was fascinated by cellphones.
The one who isn't has the bigger issue with emotional regulation, the one who likes devices has always been fairly calm. I did think the older one got a little too much screen time when he was younger, but it was used to get him to sit down to eat, he was underweight and needed something to entertain him to actually get him to eat, otherwise he would just play with his food and not eat it.
I think the youngest was more interested in his brother than electronics. He also used to be a great eater. Eating now - well they are young kids, never know how much they will eat at a meal but if they are hungry they will at least eat nutritious food at sometime during the day.
@AffyAvo
yes thanks for sharing that! I think its interesting because emotional regulation is a multifaceted skill that's gets influenced from almost anything you can think of, and each effect varies from person to person. Technology has it's uses to help children find entertainment and also even information/education, but sometimes in other cases it can cause the opposite. I guess it's good to take these information with as it applies to a case by case basis.
