Does your child throw terrible tantrums? Chances are it’s YOUR fault because you use your mobile phone too much
Academics highlight the modern addictions that could be causing behavioural problems in your kids
IF YOU'RE a parent reading this on your iPhone while your kids are playing, you might want to put it down and pay them some attention.
Academics have said that parents' technology and social media addictions are responsible for making children disruptive.
A small study from an American university found that the children of parents whose use a lot of technology that interrupted family time were more likely to display bad behaviour including "oversensitivity, hot tempers, hyperactivity and whining".
"We know that parents' responsiveness to their kids changes when they are using mobile technology and that their device use may be associated with less-than-ideal interactions with their children," said Jenny Radesky, a child behaviour expert and paediatrician at the University of Michigan's C.S. Mott Children's Hospital.
"It's really difficult to toggle attention between all of the important and attention-grabbing information contained in these devices, with social and emotional information from our children, and process them both effectively at the same time."
Radesky asked 170 mums and dads from two-parent households about their use of technology.
She found an "association between greater digital technology use and potential relationship dysfunction between parents and their children".
Parents were asked about how often they checked their phone or used other gadgets.
They then told researchers how often their children "whined, sulked, easily got frustrated, had tantrums or showed signs of hyperactivity or restlessness".
To make sure the experiment was fair, Radesky considered other factors including parents' income, stress levels and level of education when assessing a child's behaviour.
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She found that even "low or seemingly normal amounts of tech-related interruptions" were linked with greater child behaviour problems
Radesky advised parents to restrict their use of technology and focus on playing with their children.
"Parents may find great benefits from being connected to the outside world through mobile technology, whether that's work, social lives or keeping up with the news.
"It may not be realistic, nor is it necessary, to ban technology use all together at home," she added.
"But setting boundaries can help parents keep smartphones and other mobile technology from interrupting quality time with their kids."
Here's how to tell if your child is at risk of becoming a tech addict.
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